Here at Revolver, we're always on the hunt for great new music — indeed, it's a big part of our jobs. With that in mind, here are the tracks released this week in metal, hard rock, hardcore and beyond that have been on heavy rotation at Revolver HQ. For your listening pleasure, we've also compiled the songs in a Spotify playlist, below, which will grow each week.
Sick of It All - "Inner Vision"
Sick of It All have been putting everything on the line for New York hardcore for over 30 years, but there's clearly much more left in the tank, as heard on the group's rousing new single "Inner Vision," off their forthcoming LP Awaken the Sleeping Dragon! Like the mythical creature on the album's cover, frontman Lou Koller spits fire on the track, while copter-felling riffage rages around him. Hardcore is sometimes considered to be a young man's game, but these grizzled veterans show no signs of falling behind.
Bruise - "Sands of Time"
Sometimes innovation can miss the point of what it sought to improve, and sometimes you just want to hear some disgusting breakdowns and unfettered rage. Young Midwestern hardcore outfit Bruise bring tried-and-true brutality to the fore on their latest LP, Grief Ritual, and ninth track "Sand of Time" is a standout among the leaden sludge of the short, pummeling album.
Gouge Away - "Ghost"
Rising Florida post-hardcore act Gouge Away traffic in Jesus Lizard/AmRep-influenced noise rock. And while "Ghost" kicks off with the deliciously gnarly bass tones and dissonant feedback inherent in their influences, the latest track from the band's forthcoming second album, Burnt Sugar, takes a left turn into more melodic, introspective territory with the appearance of vocalist Christina Michelle's clean singing in the verses — resulting in a catchy-as-hell cut bursting with build-release tension and heavy retro-modern vibes.
Avast - Mother Culture
Atmospheric black metal has long taken inspiration from environmental destruction and end-of-days scenarios, and now Avast have thrown their own spin on the theme with "Mother Culture." Guitarist Trond Salte describes the track as an "apocalyptic tale about the rise and fall of human civilization and how we have exploited the Earth's resources to such a degree that we are now standing on the brink of our own extinction." Acerbic wailing and post-metal expanses flesh out the nearly nine-minute epic, while the lyrical inspiration is drawn from philosophical questions on modern ethics and sustainability posed in the philosophical novel Ishmael. If the end is indeed nigh, this isn't a bad way to go out.
Pig Destroyer - "Mt. Skull"
Life is hard for a Pig Destroyer fan. The Virginian grindcore experts don't tour very often and they don't release albums very often (their last was 2012's Book Burner), and when they do drop new songs, said tunes are almost always brief, sub–two-minute offerings that flash by before you can even catch your breath. On the upside, J.R. Hayes, Scott Hull and Co. never to fail to pack plenty of fret-frying riffs and brain-frying psychodrama into their short, sharp shocks, as they do on "Mt. Skull," one of the grindier cuts on their (relatively) more groove-oriented, less–A.D.D.-ridden next LP Head Cage. It's a minute and a half of exactly what keeps fan coming back, despite the hardship.
Wicca Phase Springs Eternal - "Stress"
The one-man project of former Tigers Jaw frontman Adam Mcllwee, Wicca Phase Springs Eternal is a hard artist to nail down in terms of genre, and his newest single "Stress" makes it even harder. Regardless of how you categorize it, however, the song's emotion rings is simply human. Mcllwee's gothy sing-song raps coat the stand-alone cut in a familiar misery, detailing every moment of stress that overtakes him. He's not alone in his feelings, as Camp Cope vocalist Georgia Maq joins in for a beautifully sung counterpoint, slipping into a brief moment of rapping herself before the track's climax.
