male//gaze

Every week, our inbox is flooded with new singles from across the alternative scene, and while we’d love to highlight them all, there’s simply too much great music to keep up with. That’s where Already Heard Recommends: Songs of the Week comes in. We sift through the latest releases to bring you a handpicked selection of the standout tracks you need to hear. Whether it’s rock, punk, emo, hardcore, metal, or something in between, we cut through the noise and bring you the songs that deserve your attention. Electric Callboy - Tanzneid As they kick off their world tour, Electric Callboy have delivered another pulsating blast of electro metalcore with 'Tanzneid'. As always, the dynamic German outfit produce an infectious number that blends heavy metalcore with euphoric dance club music. Alongside its outworldly video, 'Tanzneid' is a celebration of rhythm that only Electric Callboy can pull off. “With 'TANZNEID', we wanted to capture that wild tension between heavy energy and pure dancefloor madness," the bans shared. "Turning our music into a party where everyone belongs. Playful, catchy, and powerful — that’s 'TANZNEID'.” The 'Tanzneid' World Tour began Denmark yesterday, and will be heading to a sold out Alexandra Palace in London on November 11th. With an arsenal of bangers already at their disposal, 'Tanzneid' is another reason not to miss Electric Callboy. https://youtu.be/3OrHy_TRudo Alkaline Trio - Surprise Surprise After releasing 'Oblivion' and 'Bleeding Out' in recent months, Alkaline Trio complete a hat-trick of singles with 'Surprise Surprise'. Where the past two tracks thrived off their sturdy, energetic brand of punk, 'Surprise Surprise' is a more subdue affair that sees guitarist Matt Skiba in a vulnerable manner. It sees him in a reflective and sincere mood, drawing on from experiences of a friend. “‘Surprise Surprise’ was inspired by and written for a friend of mine who grew up poor and entrenched in gang life, only to become a Navy SEAL and eventually an astronaut. It’s his story, combined with my own thoughts regarding how a sort of alchemy takes place when someone takes the experiences of a bad situation, and is able to turn them into something profound and beautiful," explains Skiba. As the track builds, bassist/vocalist Dan Andriano provides a sombre bridge as Atom Willard's spacious and dense drum simply adds to 'Surprise Surprise's atmosphere. Alongside'Oblivion' and 'Bleeding Out,' 'Surprise Surprise' is the third track that Alkaline Trio worked on with producer Travis Barker. Skiba states the track "was even more of a collaboration and studio creation than the previous two." He also said "the rough sketch of the song had only verse and chorus parts, but no bridge, which was written by Dan in the studio." https://youtu.be/5R3K1edmKvw Artio - Let It Be A Void Rising Leeds-based alt-rockers Artio are gearing up to release their debut album, 'Soul Rot,' in the new year. As a preview, they dropped 'Let It Be A Void'. The dynamic and heavy-hitting number blends sharp alt-rock with occasional hip-hop beats, building to an intense climax. While Rae Brazill's soaring vocals shine throughout. Commenting on the track, Artio's vocalis shareed, “'Let It Be a Void' is about refusing to let other people's ignorant hatred and detest of their own existence get in the way of mine. If you refuse to see me as I am, then I will no longer expend energy to cater to what you want me to be.” The four-piece will follow up the release of 'Soul Rot' with a UK tour in March. It'll kick off in Nottingham on March 11th, taking in shows in London, Bristol, Glasgow and Leeds, before ending in Manchester on March 21st. https://youtu.be/DjN9ECFp8Bw 'Soul Rot' by Artio is released on January 21st on LAB Records. Last Hounds - World’s Disease Midlands crossover crew Last Hounds deliver a pounding slice of hardcore on 'World's Disease'. Serving as the first slice of new music since their 'Growing Pains' EP earlier this year, 'World's Disease' is a raw introspection of a changing environment and the mental weight it takes on frontman Mikey Skelcher. “'World’s Disease' is about the uneasy space between personal change and a world that feels like it’s falling apart”, explains Mikey. “It’s the moment you stop and wonder, are things really getting worse, or am I just seeing them differently? As we get older, our sense of what matters shifts. Sometimes we care too much, sometimes not enough, and it’s hard to know if that’s self-protection or just how we adapt to a tougher world. At its core, it’s about burnout, fake smiles, the sound of trying to figure out if you’re losing faith or just finally seeing things for how they really are.” After a summer of shows with Letlive., Last Hounds will round off the year with headline shows next month in Glasgow, Birmingham, Bristol, and London, before joining Your Demise 2004 in Cardiff. https://youtu.be/mt5Wt6AqZug Lemondaze - polari This past summer, Cambridge-based quartet Lemondaze joined Venn Records and shared a track called 'o(type)'. Now after an impressive and humble outing at the ArcTanGent Festival, they're back with a new song, 'polari'. It sees Lemondaze produce an ethereal slice that comfortably blurs post-rock, shoegaze, and grungy together with a cathartic, emotional weight. For lyricist and vocalist Isis de Chastelain, the represents rose-tinted youthful escapism. "I wrote the lyrics after we played Green Man Festival in 2022; it was the most magical time in the most beautiful place with my best friends," Isis shares. "The track itself has this nostalgic feeling to me, summer, getting drunk with your best friends, being young. That’s what the lyrics are for me, going ride or die on the craziest adventure with the people that mean the most to you. The song itself came together during a Covid-fuelled fever dream when Finn (drums) and I were quarantining together. It was 4 days of playing Lego Batman and Halo 3, making Swedish meatballs and writing 'polari' (it was originally called 'eggs box 420' - lol)." 'polari' is taken from Lemondaze's upcoming ''subtext'' EP. Set for release next month, it'll be the quartet's first release in four years, and will be followed by shows in Brightin, Manchester, Bristol, Nowrich, and Cambridge. https://youtu.be/QqWTqriovpI 'subtext' by Lemondaze is released on December 5th through Venn Records. Civil Service - Turn Out The /// Light Last year, emerging post-rockers Civil Service made their mark with their debut album, '///LIGHT'. They're no preparing to release its follow-up, 'DARK ///'. Taken from it is the album closer, 'Turn Out The /// Light'. The seven-minute number is a sample of the Manchester-based band's lushious soundscapes. Aided by vocals from Liam Knowles (Hidden Mothers) and Scott Shepard (Blackshape), they capture the feeling of despair and isolation that weaves through 'DARK ///'s. "Turn Out The /// Light is the perfect musical embodiment of this 2-album project and had to be the closer to this chapter," reflect Civil Service when commenting on the track. "The brutality of Liam's harsh vocals against pulses of guitar noise gives way to hope as Scott sings beautifully over sparse piano, each lyric referencing a song on the record. Finally, Light and Dark combine in a maximalist post-rock crescendo." "We normally go into the studio knowing exactly what we want to do, but this song has been a white whale for longer than we care to remember. The song is built from parts written by the band 4 years ago, and parts written the week before it had to be recorded. Liam kindly took time out of his evening to come and record his vocals over an early mix of the track and Scott sent us some incredible stems from Utah. Our thanks too to Ramin Bostan (Groan Room) for playing trumpet multiple times for the outro." https://youtu.be/dap5ZRzbVzE 'Dark ///' by Civil Service is released on November 21st on A Cheery Wave Records and Ripcord Records. Blank Atlas - Leave My Life Behind Ahead of shows in the UK and Ireland, Bristol trio Blank Atlas return with an emotional and anthemic number in 'Leave My Life Behind'. Utilising three-part harmonies, the track emphasises Blank Atlas' anthemic drive and pairs it with a heavy, emotional anchor. The combination of Tom Thould's punctual drum work, Chris Simpson's subtle bass groove, and guitarist Dan Thould's fuzzy power chord distortion, leads to a satisfying number. “Leave My Life Behind was written during a pretty sad time - a time when I felt like I wanted to leave everything behind instead of facing up to what was happening to me, and the effect it was having on my life," guitarist Dan Thould says. "Rationally, we all know that’s a terrible idea - but at the time, leaving my life behind sounded more and more enticing by the minute.” The aforementioned shows are a co-headline run with The Last Vinci. They will begin in London, before heading to Birmingham, Bristol, and Plymouth. They will then head to Ireland for shows in Dublin, Waterford, Limerick, and Cork. https://youtu.be/msCGMqbMIc0 male//gaze - Soft & Quiet On their upcoming 'Too Late Now' EP, "extreme pop" makers male//gaze explore themes of trauma, healing, and identity. From it comes 'Soft & Quiet.' The introspective track sees vocalist Ash reflect on a toxic relationship, becoming empowered, and refusing to not worn down. Textured synths, atmospheric guitars, and rapid hardcore blasts build round her cathartic words to create an alluring sample of what male//gaze are about. "'Soft & Quiet' is a song about a toxic relationship where the only way it makes sense to survive is to make myself smaller..softer…quieter. By the end of the song, I’m frustrated and dedicated to breaking out of those patterns completely," the band shared. "With the context of the full EP, I will fully reject the idea of letting anyone speak over me or speak for me at all. A return to myself completely." With comparisons to Foxing, The Armed, and Holy Fawn, male//gaze have been fine-tuning their brand of "extreme pop" for three years. Described by some as being "aggressively cathartic," the US quintet mix moments of vulnerability and beauty with raw aggression. https://youtu.be/L9St2ZB6UmE 'Too Late Now' by male//gaze is released on 28th November. Newish Music Playlist Update The past seven days has seen over 60 tracks being loaded up to our 'Newish Music' Playlist. It sees the likes of Alexisonfire, Puscifer, Glitterer, The Hyena Kill, and Tesseract preview upcoming releases. While there are new singles from As December Falls, nothing.nowhere, Weatherstate, Tayne, The Throwaway Scene, Commoner, and more. 601 - You Need This (feat. DeathCollector) Alexisonfire - Cuz Alkaline Trio - Surprise Surprise As December Falls - Flametide As We Speak - Everyone Is Dead Asleep At The Helm - Bloodline Atlas - I Whisper Your Name Like A Curse Beans on Toast - Pelican Crossing Bitters and Distractions - The Threads Blackbriar - The Fossilized Widow (Parlor Piano Version) Blank Atlas - Leave My Life Behind Chairmaker - Loud, Confident, and Wrong Commoner - Breach Cult(ure) - Inertia Devilz By Definition - Devilz Knight Distant - Desolation DITZ - Don Enzo Magic Carpet Salesman Dreamweapon - Scarecrow Army Electric Callboy - Tanzneid Epimetheus - Perseus 9 Equilibrium - Borrowed Waters FieldHockey - Mazes Forlorn - Let Them Run The Funeral Portrait - Voodoo Doll Get The Shot - Torture Your Corpse Ghold - Place To Bless A Shadow Glitterer - Stainless Steel Himalayas - What If...? (Alternative Version) Hollow Peak - Attack Hot Fiends - GUNK The Hyena Kill - Collapse The Sun Iron Saviour - Fame Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter - Forever, I've Been Being Born Kreator - Tränenpalast Last Hounds - World’s Disease Lemondaze - polari The Light Superior - Ghost male//gaze - Soft & Quiet MaveriX - I Hate You All Mercy Whip - Dogma Moonraker - Rubella The Molotovs - Rhythm Of Yourself My Place Was Taken - Rude Awakening Neo Dimes - Angels New Miserable Experience - Payback from God New World Old Bodies - Curse of the Dead nothing.nowhere - Cardinal in the Crossfire Pink Footage - It Comes At Night Pinkshift - Eyeless (Live in Brooklyn) Plague of Angels - Black Requiem Port Noir - Redshift Puscifer - Pendulum Satin Puppets - Exoskeleton Sex Mask - Cold Solence - Monsters In My Head Starbenders - The Beast Goes On Sunbendr - Pictures Tayne - Somebody To Love Tesseract - Tender (Live At Radar) The Throwaway Scene - This Place Is Full of Envy Trial Tapes - 42 UKofA - Commit Unprocessed - Head in the Clouds Veil of the Serpent - Black Sun Weatherstate - fear Yakkie - Kill The Cop Inside Your Head https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6uq9yITpdLIUKdNzPvJmxr?si=L3bkslQrR8quJtSo95KKgg The 'Newish Music' playlist is also available on Apple Music. Have a song to consider for a future edition of 'Already Heard Recommends? Tell us about it here. Consider supporting Already Heard on Kofi. We are an independently owned website run by one person (Sêan Reid). By supporting AlreadyHeard on Ko-Fi, you can help cover hosting costs and keep the website ad-free.

male//gaze

Already Heard Recommends: Songs of the Week (2/11/2025)