Here at Revolver, we're always on the hunt for new songs to bang our heads to — indeed, it's a big part of our jobs. With that in mind, here are the tracks released this week in metal, hard rock and hardcore that have been on heavy rotation at Revolver HQ. For your listening pleasure, we've also compiled the songs in a Spotify playlist, which will grow each week.
Tool - "7empest"
At nearly 16 minutes, Fear Inoculum's final proper song, "7empest," is undeniably progressive in structure and instrumentation, featuring Adam Jones' most crazed solo and an array of shifting suites. But in tone, it calls back to the raw, unfiltered vitriol of Tool's debut EP Opiate or even Ænima's "Hooker With a Penis." "Acting all surprised when you're caught in a lie," Maynard James Keenan spits. "We know better ... We know your nature!" Tool may have headier aspirations these days, but they can still rage, and us with them.
GosT - "Ligature Marks"
GosT's style has changed drastically since the former solo act exploded onto the electronic scene a few years back. Now a duo whose leanings delve into blackened industrial aesthetics and sounds, as exemplified by new cut "Ligature Marks," the project's dark evolution is a welcome change of pace amid the cloying trendiness of synthwave, suggesting GosT have a staying power so many of their bandwagon-jumping peers do not.
Gatecreeper - "Social Decay"
Dancing might not be most listeners' gut reaction upon hearing death metal, but 15 seconds into Gatecreeper's impossibly groovy "Social Decay" and you'll see exactly why it's hard to keep any body part still while blasting the sleazy, almost sarcastically good riffs. These guys aren't reinventing the wheel, but the classics — when done well — never go out of style.
The Devil Wears Prada - "Lines of Your Hands"
It might be a love song, but it certainly doesn't sacrifice heaviness. "This just feels very 'make it, or break it' for us," the Devil Wears Prada's Mike Hranica has said of the band's upcoming album The Act. Lead single "Lines of Your Hands" builds on the sonic, spacey texture of 2016's totally underrated Transit Blues with the spoken word, à la the singer's God Alone project, that aims right for the head and the heart. It's metalcore, but reimagined and more mature, and we can't wait to hear more come October 11th.
Counterparts - "Wings of Nightmares"
Delivering tried and true hardcore while maintaining a fresh, passionate sound, Counterparts' "Wings Of Nightmares" showcases the kind of infectious hooks and anthemic vocals that get crowds circle-moshing in camaraderie. Special shout out to the China cymbal in the breakdown, which brings back a certain nostalgia for anyone who loved the genre during its most emo-adjacent heyday.
Vastum - "Reveries in Autophagia"
Vastum's cavernous flurry of death metal on "Reveries in Autophagia" is a welcome challenge to the current onslaught of by-the-numbers OSDM. Coming in heavy and smoky with searing vocal disharmonies to break up the barrage of blast beats and swamp-rot riffs, the cut is a filthy beacon of hope ahead of the band's coming LP Orificial Purge.
