Curated by Monk
It’s hard to believe that we are rushing ever faster towards the end of another ‘banging year for ‘banging music, but here we are diving deep into the penultimate month with another selection of the hottest tunes to have found their way onto our deathdecks and into our aural memory banks over the past while… and it has to be said that this is probably one of the heaviest playlists we have cranked up to maximum volume in quite some time, so let’s dive straight into the tunes…
Asleep At The Helm ‘Tarnished’ (Self-Released)
Just finishing off a trio of promotional dates across the north of England, this Manchester techcore quartet have in no way tarnished their reputation for producing hard-hitting genre-crossing ‘bangers with this decisive declaration. (Warning: the accompanying video contains flashing images).
Comastatic ‘Self-Sabotage’ (Hopeless Records)
The first of two Swiss acts featured in our latest countdown (see if you can figure out which the other one is!), this pop punk duo celebrate signing to possibly the most respected labels in the genre by teaming up with Aussie counterparts Down And Out for this exploration of striking the balance between outward perfection and inner chaos:
Dead Air ‘Violently Blue’ (Self-Released)
This south London alt-rock trio have loads of stuff already in the pipeline for 2025, but are rounding off their current year with this first taster of what were by all accounts some pretty intensive round-the-clock recording sessions:
Drop It First ‘Where The Wind Blows’ (Thousand Islands Records)
This Quebecois melodic punk combo features plenty of experience, having been founded by two of the members of Our Darkest Days and boasting a line-up that between them have released ten EPs and 11 albums, and performed more than 1250 live shows – and that experience shows in this hard-hitting and declarative introduction to their debut album, due for release in January:
Dunes ‘Voodoo’ (Ripple Music)
The Geordie stoners prove that the spirit of Samhain is still lingering in the air on this collaboration with High Desert Queen frontman Ryan Garney on this second taster from their upcoming new album, on which they will take on a journey into the heart of the ‘Land Of The Blind’ in January:
Ebolagoldfish ‘Bad Choices Good Times’ (Cat’s Claw Records)
There’s definitely something in the beer down under that sees the land of Oz continuing to produce quality punk band after quality punk band, as this combo with one of the best names of any band in this playlist prove with the title track of their upcoming fourth studio album, released this coming Friday:
Gotho ‘Second Fight In Planet Disco Dance’ (Supernatural Cat)
We’ve a fair few heavy-hitting duos in this latest selection, but this Italian self-styled “prog-avant” instrumental pairing have given us both the best song title of our shortlist and the weirdest offering, with this standalone choice from their imminent sci-fi concept album:
Hangman’s Chair ‘Kowloon Nights’ (Nuclear Blast)
One of the most unique sounding doom bands in the genre, these French innovators add a distinctly shoegaze twist to their normal gothicism in this suitably dark and dense tribute to the now lost Asian city, the first taster of their upcoming seventh album and their first new music in almost three years:
J Delva ‘Awakening’ (Self-Released)
Spanish-born but now resident in Dublin, singer-songwriter Javi del Val seeks to meld influences from the golden days of power pop and classic Eighties-style power balladry with Nineties boyband aesthetics into a wholesome acoustic-led entity – and pretty much succeeds, if you ask us… which you didn’t, but we’re telling you anyway!
Joe Maxi ‘The Game’ (Self-Released)
The title track of the Irish post-punk outfit’s upcoming new EP sees the band veering between being the resident lounge act for a very David Lynch cabaret and spilling all manner of sonic dissonance and hell upon us and drawing us deeper into their dystopian and psychotic vision that we are living in an AI-generated Matrix-meets-Truman simulation:
Last Temptation ‘Heart Starter’ (Metalville Records)
The French retro-rockers aim to get the blood pumping with this title track from their upcoming third album, released later this month:
Make Them Suffer ‘Small Town Syndrome’ (Greyscale Records)
These Aussie metalcore mobsters are definitely looking past the geographic affliction which they address on this, the closing track of their just-released self-titled new album, as their global trajectory continues on an exponential climb:
Marble ‘The Sleepless King’ (Rockshots Records)
Well, it wouldn’t be a #SinglesClub without a bit of cheesy OTT symphonic metal, and nobody serves it up with more mozarella than the Italians, as this interpretation of the story of Lady Macbeth proves to dramatic effect:
Matt Edible & The Obtuse Angels ‘Better Than Oasis’ (Inedible Records)
This Hull-based lo-fi indie-pop trio deliver a love song told through the metaphor of Britpop, with lines like “I’m better than Oasis when I am with you/We’re Be Here Now when we’re apart, but together we’re albums 1 and 2”, a taster of their new album, due for release in February:
Paleface Swiss ‘My Blood On Your Hands’ (Self-Release)
These gothic death metallers continue to explore the darker side of human existence and nature, as well as diving deep into the turmoil of unspoken fears and the endless cycle of unresolved struggles, on this second course served up from their upcoming third album:
Palejoy ‘I Bet Heaven Isn’t Real At All’ (Self-Released)
The Scottish emo trio cap off a year of intensive gigging and viral momentum with this tale of grief, loss and self-loathing:
Rose Fatale ‘So Mature’ (Self-Released)
We know a thing or three about both punk rock and riots, and have combined the two in the past (in the form of the infamous ‘Battle Of Bedford Street’ which erupted after the authorities pulled a Clash gig at the last minute), and the legacy is well and truly alive with this young combo who live up to the title of their debut single in terms of the impact they make:
Tayne ‘Fear’ (MNRK Heavy/Inside Job)
Regarded as one of the standard bearers of the new generation of British industrial noise pop, the trio, who hail from Dublin but are now based in London and will spread more ‘Love’ with the release of their debut album in January, channel a Nine Inch Nails meets Boy Harsher vibe in this collaboration with labelmates Rolo Tomassi:
The Browning ‘Misery.exe’ (FiXT)
The electro-deathcore duo continue to push musical boundaries by teaming up with trap metal guitarist and TikTok creator Nik Nocturnal for this latest, cyberpunk-inflected offering from their just released new album, ‘OMNI’:
The Velveteers ‘Suck The Cherry’ (Easy Eye Sounds)
“Put my name in your mouth/Chew it up and spit it out” challenges frontwoman Demi DeMitro in this cathartic but energetic rallying call centred around feeling used and fed up in the face of vulnerability, the Colorado trio’s first new music in three years and opening salvo from their second album, due in February:
Tiberius ‘Tip Of The Spear’ (Self-Released)
Our final selection is one which undoubtedly have our resident prog/metalcore fan wetting his pants in anticipation of the follow-up album, but he’ll have to wait until March for that and in the meantime sate his appetite for angular, off-kilter, snarky intricacy with this lead track:
So there you have it: as I said at the top, perhaps our heaviest playlist in quite some time, but nevertheless another eclectic selection in which we hope you have found something to tickle your fancy and make you want to investigate further… Until next time, remember: keep ‘er lit, keep ‘er between the hedges and keep on Über Rockin’ in the free world \m/
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