Back in those dismal days of the 2020 pandemic and everything going into lockdown, the world had no end of great music to provide in-home entertainment. One of that year’s more interesting metal releases came from From Under Concrete Kings (you have to wonder how many different combinations of words were considered to create that acronym), which mixed elements of hardcore and groove metal with the artiness of bands like Between The Buried & Me to share something that not only had a great energy, but was far less predictable than “the norm”.
Tag Archives: metalcore
THE REAL GONE SINGLES BAR #171
Welcome back to the Real Gone Singles Bar, the place where we explore some of the more interesting individual tracks that have landed in our inbox over the past couple of weeks. This time out, we bring you a great singer songwriter, some post punk riffs with a gothy twist, a very entertaining piece of retro pop…and more besides. As always, we hope you find something new to enjoy!
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THE REAL GONE SINGLES BAR #167
This trip to the Singles Bar promises a proper mixed bag. We’ve got indie rock, pop punk from one of Cornwall’s finest exports, some well crafted electronica with ambient undercurrents, a hugely radio friendly track from Northern Ireland, and even a guest spot from a genuine legend. And that’s just for starters! As always, we hope you find something new to enjoy…
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KILL THE SILENCE – Resolve
In terms of blending metal subgenres, Kill The Silence’s ‘The Final Word’ makes a bold statement. The track’s very heavy intro fuses the sheer force of groove metal with the complexity of prog, resulting in something that appears to pull in different directions, yet sounds incredibly tight. It takes all of a few seconds for guitarists Sam Rickerby and Daniel Ridding to make an impact, and the huge and dirty tones recall great work by Chimp Spanner, as well as the slightly more commercial sounding later works by Lamb of God, before introducing a classic sounding hardcore vocal; the kind that would normally sit with music closer to a hardcore punk sound. By the time the audience gets to grips with that, Kill The Silence switch gears to demonstrate more of a melodic streak, taking things from a techy/post-hardcore stance further into a world of sophisticated emo tones, allowing plenty of space for a genuinely powerful vocal from Jason Walsh. The way he uses his voice to soar, even when the rest of the band are tackling some rather sharp edges, sets up a superb contrast, and it’s that contrast that makes ‘The Final Word’ not just interesting, but genuinely thrilling.
PREMIER JESTER – Turn You On
Premier Jester aren’t afraid to mix genres. Since the release of their earliest singles ‘PJ Lovers’ and ‘Sales King’, the UK band have shared an energy driven sound that takes the guts of metalcore and splices its aggressive edge to a world of electronica and dance sounds, but also throws in a bit of retro alternative and some big choruses to create something huge. In many ways, their best work sounds like Electric Callboy, but steered in a slightly more accessible direction. As you might expect, such intensities work brilliantly in short bursts, making PJ masters of the digital single.