Dan Hillier
Releasing shortly after their recent tour with Bob Vylan, self-confessed sinners Witch Fever are back with their latest single in the form of ‘In Birth’. Depicting the experiences that vocalist Amy Walpole was subjected to during their regimented Christian upbringing, the track is a raw, gritty and downright sacrilegious flagellation of modern punk that’s tainted with subtle lashings of doom and riot grrl to sardonically articulate the misogyny of religion as a whole. An absolute cathedral burner of a track, the single is yet another single from an act that refuse to comply with strangling and regressive social norms and shows effortlessly why Witch Fever have become such a coveted and covered band in such a short amount of time. – Dan Hillier
Although billed as melodic death metal, The Agonist have never fit particularly neatly into that box; from their embracing of technicality and progressive elements as well as folding in backing choirs and other genre touchstones aplenty. Their latest single ‘Remnants In Time’, taken from their upcoming EP Days Before The World Wept, opens with sombre piano before frenetic guitars explode into life. Drummer Simon McKay is on as fine form as ever; blast beats meet galloping double bass drum work without ever seeming flashy or spurious. Vocally, it’s as diverse as ever; singer Vicky Psarakis switches effortlessly between melodic sung passages and full-throated screams. The song ends as it begins, with eerie and melancholic piano that merely hints at the storm to come. – Will Marshall
Taken from their forthcoming new EP Poltergeists, ‘Alone Not Lonely’ is the latest track from self-stated Exeter ‘sad-gazers’ Soot Sprite. A track documenting how one can thrive independently and an overall celebration of self-love, the single see’s the band further leaning into a more polished indie-pop and emo sound all whilst retaining the DIY fuzz that coated the material that helped the become such a celebrated band in the first place. Going from this alone, there’s no doubt that the Specialist Subject Records released Poltergeists is going to be an instantly loved body of work upon it’s release on October 29th. – Dan Hillier
Much adored doomsters Khemmis have unveiled their fourth album Deceiver and released its lead single, ‘Living Pyre’, alongside it. It’s classic Khemmis; their towering melodic doom is as captivating as ever with the melancholic, haunting vocals that are often layered to great effect. As emotionally heavy as it is instrumentally, ‘Living Pyre’ and Deceiver as a whole promises to be their darkest work to date. Guitarist/vocalist Phil Pemberton said of the record, “Thematically, all of the songs are about the many ways that we are tricked into believing these stories about ourselves–that we are broken, that we are not good enough, that our genetics determine our fate. This title is the label that we put on our minds as a force that tricks us into believing these stories. The record’s lyrical trajectory is similar to Dante’s descent into an Inferno of his own making.” – Will Marshall
Woking bruisers Employed To Serve have always dwelled on the more metallic end of the harcore spectrum, but it’s with fourth album Conquering that they fully made the jump. To call it a sum of their influences, or the bands they love is reductive, but not entirely inaccurate. Latest single The Mistake is also anything but; its ripping thrash riffs sitting alongside blast beats and Justine Jones’ immediately recognisable bark. Of the track, guitarist Sammy Unwin said “‘The Mistake’ is about letting other people’s opinions of you seep into your subconscious and filling you with self-doubt. In life you can’t always win over everyone, but don’t let the haters stifle your true potential and stand in between you and your goals.” – Will Marshall
From sludgy beginnings with Remission, to the sprawling progressive epic of Crack The Skye and then to their later prog-leaning works like Emperor Of Sand, no one could ever accuse Mastodon of standing still. It’s in that spirit that they’ve announced their ninth record, and first double album, Hushed And Grim, alongside first single ‘Pushing The Tides’. Opening with a barrage of riffs and cascading drum fills that could only be them, churning guitar work and a punky edge, Brann Dailor’s soaring vocals push the chorus to triumphant heights and Troy Sanders’ bellow anchors the verses. At this stage of their career, it’s anyone’s guess where Mastodon go next and they’ve dubbed Hushed And Grim their most experimental record yet. If ‘Pushing The Tides’ is any indication, it’ll also be a very special record indeed. – Will Marshall
Presenting a momentous summiting point in a seven year long journey to the release of the Gothenburg metallers’ debut album Sometimes You’re Gonna Feel Like A Loser but That’s Alright, Dream Drop commit to an unrelenting no-holds-barred mentality, as they detail the regretfully calamitous aftermath of chasing what feels like unrealistic hopes on their latest era’s final single ‘Winter Star’. With the album’s story arc uncovering the dispiriting reality of living in what band members describe as one on the “greyest places in the world”, it shall stand as a uniting force for honesty chasers, whose own heartbreaking coming of age stories match up to the sombre and sobering realism edged into every facet of this intriguing musical exploration. – Bennie Osbourne
Multifaceted musician Emma Ruth Rundle hasn’t exactly taken a traditional path, and her music reflects that. From her work with the scathing Thou to her own solo material, there’s a huge breadth of sonic pastures she’s covered. Her latest single ‘Return’ is taken from her forthcoming album Engine Of Hell; it’s a starkly minimalist piece, a lone piano and herself, her unique timbre and sense of melody crafting a moody, thought-provoking piece. That piano is an instrument she left behind many years ago but has come to revisit, making it a focal point of ‘Return’ and Engine Of Hell as a whole. There’s a striking video accompanying it, including a dance choreographed by Rundle herself. Engine Of Hell is due for release November 5th via Sargent House. – Will Marshall
Gearing up for the deluxe re-release of their critically acclaimed 3rd LP delving into the troublesome dialogue into personal adversity; Black Foxxes stunned fans with a string of new singles conceived out of exploring the current iteration of the band’s dynamic, in hopes of maintaining a fresh and experimental perspective for their current and future musical endeavours. Their latest stimulating somewhat chillwave inspired single ‘Witch Mountain’, has a distinct charming randomness to its overall sound which can be read as an undeniable flexibility, especially when it is not only extremely reminiscent of ‘Prayers For Rain’ by The Cure, but includes genre-bending features such as a trumpet solo and snippets of voice notes recorded from within a Japanese coffee shop. For all its eccentricities, it works admirably well. – Bennie Osborne
Alt-rock upstarts Two Year Break have snagged Busted/Fightstar icon Charlie Simpson for their latest single ‘Lovin’ Every Day’. An independent band with an upcoming sold out show at London’s Hope & Anchor and their debut album Do You Wanna Find Love? (out October 8th), the fresh faced four piece blend harsher elements like screamed vocals and distorted guitar with the kind of melody and danceability that keeps you moving and grooving (think Hot Milk, Normandie, Lower Than Atlantis, etc). With all the right elements in place, it’s surely just a matter of time before Two Year Break find themselves gracing the pages of rock music magazines and venue stages all around the UK. – Elliot Grimmie
Going from material such as this it’s almost mind-boggling to know that Sleep Outside haven’t even played a single live set yet. Showcasing the huge promise that this Cardiff-London based group has is ‘Spent’, the latest single from the emo newcomers. Harkening thoughts of classic acts such as Jimmy Eat World, The Get Up Kids, Mineral and others of their ilk, ‘Spent’ is a massive anthem about the ever prominent nature of working yourself to illness. “It’s about the period in time when you throw yourself into your work and burn the candle at both ends to avoid coming to terms with everything that is going on around you”, states vocalist and guitarist Adam Holborn. “It’s an homage to the past and a reminder to check in with yourself and realise what it is you’re working towards. The song holds a special place in our, and our friends’, hearts with the reference to ‘Embassy’ – a local community centre in Cardiff that has been so important to us and so many other bands from our area in forming lifelong relationships and musical tastes.” – Dan Hillier
Come for the amusing name, stay for the massive progressive post metal. Giving Gojira, Mastodon and The Ocean a run for their money is Belgium’s Hippotraktor. A powerhouse of prog and fury that depict the power and majesty of nature – from the falling of wilted leaves all the way to the unfathomable power of rupturing stars – the quintet’s latest track ‘Mover Of Skies’ is as a stratospheric display of their collective skill as musicians and forward thinkers. An ode to the sculpting and destroying nature of the winds that traverse the globe, the single’s central riff is powerful enough to carve bedrock all whilst the technical prowess animates thoughts of the aforementioned Crack The Skye at their most dynamic and towering. Given material such as this, there’s absolutely no wonder why many are claiming Hippotraktor are to be the next big success story in European prog metal. – Dan Hillier