Hardcore
Heavy Resistance: A Playlist of Hard-Rocking Protest Songs
Over the past several weeks, we’ve seen a sea change across the nation and throughout the world. Millions of people have taken to the streets to protest against systemic racism, and the impact has been powerful. In heavy music, protest songs have provided strong condemnations of racism, oppression, war, authoritarianism, and more. Protest songs in heavy metal date back to the genre’s godfathers, Black Sabbath, who released the anti-war track “War Pigs” in 1970. Throughout the years, heavy music has produced hundreds of memorable protest anthems, with punk rock acts like The Clash and Sex Pistols leading the charge in the late ’70s, and hardcore bands like Bad Brains and Black Flag bringing the rebellion in the ’80s. In the ’90s, Rage Against the Machine took protest music to the masse...
Video Surfaces of Zack de la Rocha Playing Guitar in His Pre-Rage Against the Machine Band: Watch
Just a few years before becoming the electrifying frontman of Rage Against the Machine, Zack de la Rocha was cutting his teeth as the guitarist in the hardcore band Hard Stance. Now, 30 years later, video footage of a young Zack playing guitar with Hard Stance at a show in March 1990 has surfaced. Hard Stance formed in 1987 as a straight-edge hardcore band, with Zack on guitar and Eric Ernst on vocals. At one point, Ernst left Hard Stance, and de la Rocha took over lead vocals, eventually leading to the formation of the band Inside Out. The gig in question took place March 4th, 1990, and was apparently Hard Stance’s final concert. According to Zack’s Wikipedia page, by 1990 he would have been fronting Inside Out, so the show could have been a one-off farewell with Hard Stance. Nonetheless,...
Refused Share New Song “The Ballad of Buck Ravers” from Cyberpunk 2077 Video Game: Stream
Refused have released a new song, “The Ballad of Buck Ravers”, under their video game guise Samurai. The hardcore punks will appear as the fictional band in the upcoming video game Cyberpunk 2077, which is now due out on November 19th. “The Ballad of Buck Ravers” is the third Samurai track we’ve heard following “Chippin’ In” and “Never Fade Away”, both released last year. Fortunately for Refused fans, the band only changed in name for Cyberpunk 2077, which took the idea of The Shape of Punk to Come quite literally, even tabbing Refused to be its in-game band. Musically, this is classic Refused, with frontman Dennis Lyxzén shouting and wailing above aggressively smashed chords: “Lost another day to pointless drudgery / The slow chipping away/ Of my autonomy”. Refused’s vision of 2077 sounds...
Full of Hell Unleash New Song “Language of Molten Cherubs” via Adult Swim Singles: Stream
A little over a year since releasing their Weeping Choir album, Full of Hell have unleashed a brand-new song. The band has unveiled the single “Language of Molten Cherubs” as the latest entry in the Adult Swim Singles program. As Full of Hell continue to push their music to uncompromising extremes, “Language of Molten Cherubs” is another burst of avant noise, free jazz rhythms, and harsh metal that defies convenient genre labeling. The band’s sonic concoction brims with ideas and layered overdubs, with frontman Dylan Walker’s voice cutting through the chaos. “‘Language of Molten Cherubs’ is the final death gasp of a broken human being at the end of their rope, on the border between worlds,” reads a press release for the song. It’s unknown if the track is a holdover from the Weeping Ch...
Dead Cross (Mike Patton, Dave Lombardo) Cover Black Flag’s “Rise Above” in Solidarity with Black Lives Matter: Stream
The hardcore supergroup Dead Cross, featuring living legends Mike Patton on vocals and Dave Lombardo on drums, have covered the Black Flag classic “Rise Above” in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. Patton (Faith No More, Mr. Bungle) and Lombardo (Misfits, ex-Slayer) are joined by Dead Cross bandmates Michael Crain (guitar) and Justin Pearson (bass) on the socially distant performance. The song is preceded by an audio recording of a resident’s profanity-laced tirade against the LAPD as he called in to an actual police commission meeting on Zoom. In posting the video on Facebook and YouTube, the band stated that the performance was “created in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement and staunchly opposing police brutality and systemic racism.” Dead Cross hit the studio ...
GWAR Drummer Visits Defaced Robert E. Lee Statue, Exclaims “F**k That Guy”: Watch
A petition to replace a statue of Robert E. Lee in Richmond, Virginia, with one of late GWAR frontman Oderus Urungus has now racked up more than 30,000 signatures. Today (June 12th), drummer JiZMak Da Gusha paid a visit to the statue of the Confederate general, urging onlookers to add their names to the cause. In a video just posted to GWAR’s YouTube page, JiZMak Da Gusha can be seen approaching the crowd at the now-defaced Robert E. Lee statue, which has been completely tagged with graffiti. He greets them with a resounding “GWAR is here!!” “I’m critiquing the artwork,” continues Da Gusha. “It’s looking pretty great right now.” Someone then comments, “I think you’re the one going on top, aren’t you?”, mistaking Da Gusha for the late Oderus. But Da Gusha doesn’t correct him, answering, “Th...
Petition Launched to Replace Statue of Robert E. Lee with GWAR’s Oderus Urungus in Richmond, Virginia
Amid the protests taking place in the wake of George Floyd’s death while in police custody, some long-standing statues are not fairing very well. Now, a new petition calls for a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee in Richmond, Virginia, to be replaced with one of late GWAR leader Oderus Urungus. In recent days, statues of Christopher Columbus have been toppled and beheaded in Richmond and Boston, respectively, with protesters citing the explorer’s involvement in the genocide of Native Americans. In England, a statue of known slave-trader Edward Colston was destroyed and thrown into a river, and in Belgium, a statue of King Leopold II was removed because of his oppressive rule over the Congo. As Metal Injection reports, onetime GWAR dancer / backup vocalist Slymenstra Hymen (aka Dan...
Mr. Bungle Unveil Cover of The Exploited’s “USA”, First New Recording Since 1999: Stream
Mr. Bungle have just released their first new recording in more than 20 years. It comes in the form of a cover of The Exploited’s “USA”, with all proceeds going to COVID-19 relief efforts. Mike Patton joined fellow original members Trevor Dunn (bass) and Trey Spruance (guitar) for a series of reunion shows in February of this year, with Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian and former Slayer drummer Dave Lombardo rounding out the touring lineup. The shows focused on the group’s hardcore roots, as they performed their early 1986 demo, The Raging Wrath of the Easter Bunny, along with a number of cover songs. Then in March, news came that the very same touring lineup had convened in a studio shortly after those shows to re-record the 1986 demo, and lay down studio versions of the cover songs ...
Slipknot, Underoath, and Code Orange to Stream Full Concerts on Reimagined Knotfest Website
With concerts and festivals on hold due to the pandemic, Slipknot and their creative team have relaunched Knotfest.com as a content destination, including concert streams, original interview series, and more. While the site had been hosting weekly streams of past concerts by artists who had participated in previous Knotfest events, it has now been completely reimagined to offer a steady stream of news, interviews, performances, and new merch. In celebration, the Knotfest website is streaming full concerts by Slipknot, Underoath, and Code Orange beginning this Friday (May 29th) at 6:00 p.m. ET / 3:00 p.m. PT The three bands were set to perform on this year’s North American Knotfest Roadshow tour, which would have kicked off this Sunday (May 30th) had it not been canceled due to the COVID-19...
Trash Talk Announces Squalor EP, Unleashes “Something Wicked”: Stream
The mighty Los Angeles hardcore band Trash Talk are back with a new EP called Squalor, their first collection of new music in four years. The five-track EP was produced by Kenny Beats, whose best known for his work with hip-hop artists like Denzel Curry, slowthai, and Rico Nasty. Squalor marks the first time Kenny Beats worked with a band on a complete project, and both the band and the producer learned a lot from one another. Trash Talk credits Beats for bringing several new ideas to the table, including song-to-song interludes and the distorted sampling of Lee Spielman’s vocals. Meanwhile, Beats says Trash Talk “taught me more than almost any other project I’ve worked on.” “Working with Kenny was the first time we’ve had real input in the studio. We stepped outside our typical ...
Mike Patton Performs “Speak Spanish or Die” in Quarantine with Stormtroopers of Death: Watch
Faith No More singer Mike Patton has delivered a quarantine performance of “Speak Spanish or Die” with reunited members of Stormtroopers of Death (made up of current and former Anthrax members). The song is a lyrical reworking of title track from S.O.D.’s 1985 debut album, Speak English or Die. Last month, the S.O.D. members — Anthrax drummer Charlie Benante and guitarist Scott Ian, along with former Anthrax bassist Dan Lilker — unveiled a quarantine performance of “March of the S.O.D.” It marked the first activity from the crossover thrash band since 2007. Patton, meanwhile, had performed “Speak Spanish or Die” during the February run of reunion shows by Mr. Bungle, who featured Scott Ian in their live lineup for those gigs. In the socially distant version of the track, Patton is seen wit...
Fever 333 Team Up with Run-DMC’s Darryl McDaniels on New Remix of “Animal”: Stream
Fever 333 have joined forces with legendary Run-DMC rapper Darryl “DMC” McDaniels on a new version of their song “Animal”. The track was remixed by producers J Randy and Nellz. The original version of “Animal” appears on Fever 333’s 2019 debut album Strength in Numb333rs. For the remix, singer Jason Aalon Butler trades verses with DMC in what is a dream come true for the Fever 333 frontman. Butler discussed his reverence for Run-DMC and McDaniels in the following statement: “I learned most of what I know and utilize in my life musically, socially, and intellectually via hip hop music. I was obsessed with the idea of taking the adversity of the culture experienced and turning it into a song that moved to the beat of the human pulse while telling a story in a way that only adversity influenc...
