Dan Hillier
UK punk has been missing a particular type of sound for quite some time now, and Last Hounds might just have the answer. The Birmingham fivepiece’s blistering delivery will take you right back to 2007, a time when letlive., Comeback Kid and Gallows ruled the punk airwaves; they’ve got the bark, and the bite to deliver high octane, explosive noise right into your earholes. That’s not the only trick in their repertoire though. With ‘Bubbles’, Last Hounds borrow a leaf straight out of Turnstile’s book, lacing the nostalgic sounding track with a hefty amount of groove and some floaty, more ambient moments before smashing right back in with some gnarly, heavy punk noise. Last Hounds definitely wear their influences on their sleeves, but they wear them well, and following on from their 2021 debut album Burden, ‘Bubbles’ is fantastic continuation in sound and a welcome return from a band that knows what they’re all about and nail the delivery every time. – Elliot Grimmie
They say all good things must come to an end, when Press To MECO called it a day earlier this year, Unpeople rose from its still smouldering ashes, playing both Press To MECOs final and Unpeople’s debut show at this year’s 2000Trees. Luke Caley and Jake Crawford carry their affinity for writing huge riffs and harmonised vocals into this already gleaming new project; long with drummer Richard Rayner and Sarpa Salpa’s Meg Mash on bass, they’ve concocted a surefire recipe for success. Their debut track ‘Smother’ is a delicious first course in what feels like a huge step for a band barely begun with a filthy riff to kick things off, accompanied by an instantly memorable lick. This band somehow manages to fit a bit of everything you could want from them in a single track, it’s got bite, it’s got a big singalong chorus, it’s got gargantuan guitars, gang chants, pensive, emotional lyrics, and it’s all wrapped up in a tidy 3ish-minute package. Nothing short of an absolutely glorious introduction to a band we can’t wait to hear more from. – Elliot Grimmie
Unveiling the first track under his solo moniker Smo, Sammy Urwin (Employed To Serve, Renounced) has fully embraced his love of industrial, nu-metal in ‘Real People’. It’s got bounce, groove and attitude for days, the perfect soundtrack to WWE entrances from the Attitude Era – and that’s absolutely a compliment. Starting with scraping guitars and a driving groove, Urwin spits furiously over it. It’s a side to him we’ve rarely – if ever – seen, but as with seemingly everything else he turns his hand to, the riffs are colossal and it’s a great time. – Will Marshall
It’s doubtful whether a collaboration between Canadian metalcore quartet, Spiritbox and currently one of the most popular female rap artists, Megan Thee Stallion, was on anyone’s 2023 bingo card, but ‘Cobra (Rock Remix)’ is passionate, edgy and it just plain works. A welcomed surprise release following their critically acclaimed latest EP The Fear of Fear, ‘Cobra (rock remix)’ seamlessly collides two worlds together infusing heavy instrumentals and Courtney’s screams with Megan’s verses along with a punchy melodic chorus delivered by LaPlante. The metal/rap crossover may have been explored in the past, but ‘Cobra (rock remix)’ feels current, almost refreshing and concludes a fantastic and exciting year for Spiritbox. – Amy Bowles
Grungy Merthyr Tydfil based melodic rock trio Florence Black return with new single ‘Warning Sign’, blending melodramatic 80s style shredding, chugging riffs and Chris Cornell inspired, throaty vocals for a sound which manages to bring a good amount of retro swagger while staying fresh and modern. ‘Warning Sign’ is the fourth single released in anticipation of their upcoming album Bed of Nails, the follow-up to the band’s 2021 debut Weight of the World. The track takes a more melancholy vibe than the album’s previous singles with a dramatic acoustic intro backing frontman Tristan Thomas’ crooning vocals. ‘Warning Sign’ reminds us exactly why these rising stars of Welsh rock are considered some of the brightest burning out there right now. – Tom Bruce
After a mammoth year and a massive set at this year’s ArcTanGent, Aussie tech-metal prodigies Caligula’s Horse are back with new single ‘Golem’. Taken from their freshly announced full length Charcoal Grace – released January 26th via InsideOut Music – ‘Golem’ introduces the subjective themes of anxiety, alienation and how we as a species revert to basic animalistic indistinctiveness when under duress. However, it’s not a grim listen. Instead, with ‘Golem’ fashioned with the band’s distinctive progressive energy, this track only showcases Caligula’s Horse’s ability to approach forboding themes without relenting their energy nor character. “’Golem’ is about how we all struggled with the weight of expectation through the pandemic”, state the band on the single. “We felt that weight acutely as musicians, being trapped with no notion of when, or even if, we would return to the life we knew, all while feeling the pressure to create our next work rising. While that’s our specific experience, the themes of Golem are something we can all relate to. It’s a heavy song with an emphasis on riffs and driving rhythms.” – Dan Hillier
Ignorant. That’s pretty much the best way to sum up the brand new track from insane deathcore mob Psycho-Frame. An utterly visceral blast of manhole-cover snare and deranged vocals, ‘The Plot To Nuke The Midwest’ announces their sophomore EP in bewildering fashion. With grinding blast beats rattling your brain amongst some, at times, otherworldly gutteral lows and piercing highs, the deathcore supergroup (boasting members of Moodring and Vatican) don’t give you a second to catch your breath in just over three minutes of heinous filth. With their first EP taking the extreme music world by surprise, their second looks set to cement their place as one of the most exciting bands in the world of ludicrously brutal and heavy music. – Chris Earl
Lifted from their upcoming record, ‘Follower’ see’s South Wales’ Icantdie baring their fangs. A bitting metalcore track delivered with haste that sits comfortably in the vein of acts like Raiders, As Everything Unfolds and Thiscityisours, ‘Follower’ effortlessly presents the drive and venom that has launched the band into the eye of the national post-hardcore scene. They may be a relatively new band for some, but with their insatiable aptitude for bedlam made physical with this new track, it’s transparent that Icantdie are set to rise up the hierarchy of the scene in no time. – Dan Hillier
The seemingly unstoppable Full Of Hell have another collaborative release out this year, this time with shoegazers Nothing, and ‘Like Stars In the Firmament’ is the latest hint of what’s to come. Nothing‘s influence is far greater initially, a stirring, airy melody floating over stillness and gentle instrumentals. While it gradually builds, the conclusion it reaches is again more serene than might be expected of the acerbic Full Of Hell. With the two bands having charted almost parallel paths in the underground, to see them finally cross paths in such evocative fashion, particularly where previous single ‘Spend the Grace’ leaned into sludgy, post-metal territories, shows the sonic breadth of the two bands’ work together in gorgeously ethereal fashion. – Will Marshall
Come for The Simpsons reference, stay for the brilliant shoegaze. Marring lo-fi 90’s britpop with forward thinking shoegaze, Van Houten’s latest single is a woozy daydream of noise that characterises new kind of abrasive dream-pop has swiftly gained a foothold in the UK scene. Whilst it would be oh-so easy to compare this track and this act as a whole to bands such as Yuck, Deerhunter or Slowdive, doing so would be paying disservice to Van Houten’s musical scope. With their contemporary approach to classic indie and their distinctive Yorkshire edge it’s clear the band are carving out their own oeuvre within the alternative scene, something that ‘Coming Of Age’ highlights. – Dan Hillier
Your favourite space grunge cowboys, Dexter and the Moonrocks, are back with another excellent song to cry along to. ‘Autopilot’ is all about that exact feeling, when you aren’t truly making decisions consciously, living life in a daze. Blending some more shoegazey moments with their usual brand of grungy midwest emo, it’s a wonderfully melancholy song that comes over a year after the release of the demo version of this song, and the heightened production value and recording quality do not go amiss, with the song hitting that much harder and feeling that much sadder. Just over two years down the line from their first single, Dexter and the Moonrocks are still riding the wave of sad cowboy grunge with banger after banger, and ‘Autopilot’ has simply extended their already excellent track record. – Jake Longhurst
Christmas is just around the corner and Canada’s newest act Shmegmaster decided to treat us to an early present. Gifting everyone with a Christmas slam piece titled ‘Merry Shmegmas’, one can only imagine how this track plays out. Full of blasting beats and slamming rhythm sections, it’s fair to say this is definitely a slam track. Complimenting the complete chaos that ensues, vocalist Josh Willms can be heard giving their absolute all on the mic from start to finish virtually without a break. If hard guttural vocals and excessively harder instrumentals are your thing, ‘Merry Shmegmas’ by Shmegmaster is absolutely one to add to your playlist. – Nathaniel Maure
British Colombia deathcore unit Angelmaker return with a massive new single with ‘Suffer Forever’. Dropping this track as a one off as they begin recording their fourth full length, ‘Suffer Forever’ bleeds old school deathcore vibes. Built from the same roots the group’s debut, it still mingles tastes of new age deathcore into the mix, Angelmaker has taken a formula they’ve become very familiar with and amped it up a smidge for all their die hard fans. Let’s not forget about the immaculate work producer Tim Creviston has done yet again; raw yet wonderfully crisp and clean. It’s a perfect balance not many producers can manage yet Creviston has, and it hints at very promising things in 2024 for Angelmaker. – Nathaniel Maure