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.
Old Wounds - "Give a Name to Your Pain"
We were stoked when ferocious, flamboyant singer Kevin Iavaroni rejoined Jersey hardcore faves Old Wounds late last year, and we dug the group's reunion single "Only Your Enemies Leave Roses." But the band has taken shit next level with their latest offering, "Give a Name to Your Pain," the lead single from their forthcoming full-length Glow. Splitting the difference between Deftones at their heaviest and AFI at their heaviest, the song screeches and swerves, dragging the listener through compulsive mosh parts to atmospheric gothy breaks to even moshier parts. Getting pummeled by a guy in lipstick never felt this good.
Heavens Blade - "Spoiled Rotten"
What happens when current and former members of Youth Code, Suicide Silence, and Rob Zombie and Marilyn Manson's bands head out into the desert to cut some punk-rock tracks? Well, for one, you get "Spoiled Rotten," the debut single from the supergroup of sorts Heavens Blade (named for the Coil song, we presume), a short, sharp shock of unfiltered piss and vinegar. It goes by lightning fast and leaves you burnt to a crisp and feeling electrified. The only recourse? Hit repeat.
Gouge Away - "Hey Mercy"
Florida hardcore punks Gouge Away are killing it. Over the past couple months the quartet have been dropping stellar cuts from their new record Burnt Sugar (which is out now) showcasing their fresh, vicious take on AmRep-style noise rock a la Jesus Lizard. Their latest single, "Hey Mercy," is a concise encapsulation of their vision — serving up driving rhythms, distorted bass and slashing guitars while singer Christina Michelle's shredded vocals propel the track to its frenzied conclusion.
Minsk - "The Chalice and the Dagger"
Minsk's slow-burn post-metal frequently employs gorgeous vocal harmonies and controlled rage to reach its feverish peaks, and their latest song manages to follow this pattern while maintaining the freshness that's perpetuated their 16-year career. The track's progressive swells and fraught valleys conjoin to become larger than the sum of the parts, and the ugliness gives way to ecstatic release.
Witching - "False Martyr"
In a week so insidiously painful for many women, the cathartic expulsion in Witching's "False Martyr" could not have arrived at a more apropos moment. The languid clean vocals and echoing guitar bits turn to feral screeches over droning blackened doom riffs as the intensify in distortion and volume grows, leaving the listener elated and exhausted at once. "In with the good, out with the bad" is no trite construct here — the bad is discharged leaving lightness in its wake, and it feels fucking great.
Daughters - "Long Road, No Turns"
A chaotic challenge to the ears, "Long Road, No Turns" dials up the sonic anxiety while the lyrical anti-proselytism of Alexis S.F. Marshall warns against hero worship: "Don't look to me under the weight of your shouldered cross." The dizzying onslaught of cacophonous keys over a simple yet somehow foreboding drumbeat asserts Daughters' shift into firmly noise-rock territory, finally shedding the math-rock label applied to their earlier work without sacrificing the experimental structure that has become a hallmark of their sound.
