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 hardcore, fantasy metal, industrial-rap and more that have been on heavy rotation at Revolver HQ.
For your listening pleasure, we’ve also compiled the songs in an ever-evolving Spotify playlist.
Castle Rat – “WIZARD”
All hail the mighty Rat Queen and her magical band of metal freaks.
Whether wielding a mystery orb, an imposing blade or most importantly a Gibson ax, the Castle Rat leader — a.k.a vocalist-guitarist Riley Pinkerton — is conjuring a most mystical, retro-stony sound on “Wizard,” alongside the rest of the spectacularly costumed act.
Part Sabbath. Part funereal fantasy-rock. Part The Beastmaster. Fully awesome. We can’t wait to see what the Rats drag out of their forthcoming The Bestiary next.
Drain – “Nights Like These”
The kings of NorCal crossover are back with an absolute heater, and they’re making it known they’re here for the long haul.
The music video for “Nights Like These” — a bounce-moshed and mega-squealed ode to the power of live music — first finds the band, their fans and their Kewpie-Shark mascot wilding out together at a recent show. Then it time-hops to another gig in 2055 where DRAIN (portrayed on-screen by the group’s older family members) are keeping things just as sick.
In other words, Drain’s appeal is timeless.
Gore. – “Sepsis”
Coming off 2024’s incredibly strong A Bud That Never Blooms EP, Gore. have hit out with another wildly dynamic display of modern metallic tension.
The tune, which is themed around bipolar disorder, balances some of vocalist Haley Roughton’s most preciously melancholic vocal harmonies against utterly subterranean gutturals. The rest of the band supply an immersive swirl of heart-heavy-but-anthemic hooks, abrasively two-stepped noise-djent, and a dramatic ritenuto breakdown even filthier than the mud pit Roughton’s crawling through in the video.
Ho99o9 – “Upside Down”
Like they’ve done so many times before, L.A.-based rap-punks Ho99o9 bowled us ass over teakettle with their latest track, “Upside Down.”
The track generally flexes distorted-and-doom-laden nu-riffs and ominously auto-tuned vocal harmonies, though theOGM also drops a few bars. He mentions his “words ain’t bulletproof,” but “Upside Down” is an ironclad banger that has us hella excited for the duo’s upcoming Tomorrow We Escape LP.
Indeed, Tomorrow can’t come soon enough.
Orbit Culture – “Death Above Life”
Upon the arrival of Orbit Culture’s second single of the year, which also happens to be the title track of their next album, the Swedish group told us to brace ourselves for a “darker, heavier, and… more horror-driven side” of their sound. To that, we simply responded: “Bring it.”
“Death Above Life” plays out as a brutally chugged death march, and an arena-sized one at that. Straight-forward in nature. Massive in execution.
While vocalist-guitarist Niklas Karlsson bellows early on about being stuck in a war with “no path to follow,” damned if “Death Above Life” isn’t a boldly beating battle cry to thrust Orbit Culture forward through their next intense era.
Suzy Clue – “Uneasy”
“Now my voice is burning in your skull.”
It’s only been out for a few hours, but Suzy Clue’s latest single has already buried itself deep into our memory banks. While her vocal performance is breathier than that blazing allusion would otherwise suggest, it does the job right when juxtaposed against a nocturnal and hazy nu-guitar crunch.
All around, “Uneasy” is a blast back to the early-to-mid Aughts, with the song giving heavy Flyleaf-meets-Deftones vibes, and the video’s ultra-low-ride wardrobe choices and mega-sweat-slicked dance routines splitting the difference between the Pussycat Dolls and “Dirrty”-era Christina Aguilera.