{"id":97638,"date":"2024-11-22T10:00:28","date_gmt":"2024-11-22T10:00:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/?p=97638"},"modified":"2024-11-22T00:16:30","modified_gmt":"2024-11-22T00:16:30","slug":"newmusicfriday-november-22nd-2024","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/newmusicfriday-november-22nd-2024\/","title":{"rendered":"#NewMusicFriday: November 22nd 2024"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Content Breakdown<\/h3>\n

Redhook – Mutation<\/a>
\nPolar – Five Arrows <\/a>
\nWhat is out on this #NewMusicFriday?<\/a>
\nTake me to the Playlist<\/a>\n<\/div>\n

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With Christmas approaching, the amount of releases each week is winding down. It’s considered today’s #NewMusicFriday (November 22nd, 2024) list of releases is one of the last significant weeks. It’s led by the return of Swedish progressive metal greats\u00a0Opeth\u00a0<\/strong>and their conceptual record,\u00a0‘The Last Will & Testament’<\/em>. Ice-T’s rap-metal crew,\u00a0Body Count<\/strong>, are as reliable as ever by not holding back on ‘Merciless’<\/em>.\u00a0 It includes a mix of horror film-inspired moments such as ‘Purge’<\/em> and\u00a0‘Interrogation’<\/em>, pedalling metalcore (‘Live Forever’<\/em>), and an array of confrontation metallic blasts. There’s also that<\/em><\/a> interesting reworking of Pink Floyd’s\u00a0‘Comfortably Numb’.<\/em><\/p>\n

This past Wednesday,\u00a0As It Is<\/strong> delivered a decade’s worth of rarities with ‘A Decade Uneventful: B-Sides & Rarities (2012 \u2013 2022)<\/em>‘. While Bristolian alt-metallers\u00a0Mallavora<\/strong> showed why they’re “ones to watch” with their digestible EP,\u00a0‘Echoes’<\/em>. Blending lyrical catharsis with crushing distortion, soaring melodies, and stomping execution, it’s well worth sparing 15 minutes for.<\/p>\n

Some of today’s other releases include new albums from Ocean Grove<\/strong>,\u00a0Mudshark<\/strong>,\u00a0Rival Sons<\/strong>,\u00a0K. Soto<\/strong>,\u00a0Coilguns<\/strong>,\u00a0and<\/span> Boy Bleach<\/strong>. There are also new records from Aussie quartet RedHook<\/strong> and UK hardcore bruisers Polar<\/strong>, which you can read more about both below.<\/p>\n

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\"RedHook\"<\/p>\n

Redhook – Mutation<\/h2>\n

I’ll admit, I shouldn’t like what RedHook<\/b> do. Their brand of hyper pop-infused rock has all the ingredients to be unbearable, yet as the Aussie band release their second album, you can’t help but admire their ability to deliver infectious hooks.\u00a0‘Mutation’<\/em> is the Sydney-based band’s second album in a matter of just 18 months. Since then they’ve been dropping a flurry of singles that make up the majority of ‘Mutation’<\/em>s\u00a0<\/em>track listing. While this might be a gripe for some, you can’t fault\u00a0RedHook<\/strong> for wanting to keep the momentum going that\u00a0‘Postcard From a Living Hell’<\/em> has provided them.<\/p>\n

Going into the album blind, ‘Pyromaniac’<\/em>s opening moments aren’t reassuring with its electronic bleeps and bloops and Emmy Mack’s hip-hop verses. Yet as it gives way to a favourable melodic chorus, you realise\u00a0RedHook<\/strong> might have something.\u00a0‘Breaking Up With’<\/em> bounces in with an abundance of energy, and the occasional sultry sax flourishes. Lyrically, Mack takes the soul-searching route, adding a sense of sincerity to her songwriting\u00a0amongst sleek and frenzied pop-rock.<\/p>\n

If there’s one characteristic that\u00a0RedHook<\/strong> is their ability to stir up swirling, textured sounds while making each track stand out, even if the results aren’t always good.\u00a0‘HEXXX’<\/em>s mix of rapping bars, drum and bass beats, and thunderous guitars doesn’t quite pay off, despite it frantic tempo.\u00a0‘Dr. Frankenstein’<\/em> fairs better. Partly due to a cameo from\u00a0Holding Absence<\/strong><\/a>‘s Lucas Woodland, it’s a powerful, towering slice of energetic pop-rock that sees Mack and Woodland complement each other brilliantly.\u00a0‘Hot Tub’<\/em> highlights Mack’s charisma with lyrical double entendres (\u201cget the fuck in my hot tub\u201d<\/em>), while guitarist Craig Wilkinson serves up a firey guitar being backed by Alex Powys’ penetrative drums.<\/p>\n

In contrast,\u00a0‘Scream 2’<\/em> is a messy whirlwind with an earworm hook. Its scattergun approach throws in electronic, snare-pounding punk, and glitch-effected metalcore breakdown. While it highlights\u00a0RedHook<\/strong>‘s versatility, it doesn’t leave a favourable impression. Thankfully there are moments such as ‘Cannibal’<\/em>\u00a0 that allow their musical finesse to deliver. With its sexually empowering attitude, it strides forward as Alpha Wolf\u2019<\/strong>s Lochie Keogh brings a metallic bite, providing\u00a0‘Mutation’<\/em> with one of its heaviest moments. Its momentum is carried through into\u00a0‘Hurt Like Hell’.<\/em> Galloping with its bombastic energy, Powys’ drums charge forward battling Mack’s sizzling vocals.<\/p>\n

‘Mutation’<\/em> proves to be an adrenaline rush of an album. Its weaker moments, and occasional stylistic missteps, are rescued by RedHook<\/strong>‘s assured capability to write big choruses. It’s assisted by a frontwoman in Emmy Mack who flourishes with personality, even if her rapid bars can come off a little disjointed. Behind her is a versatile trio that routinely delivers a vigorous and dynamic sound. Although there’s little to separate them from the rest of the pack treading in the electro pop-rock pool,\u00a0RedHook<\/strong> continues to show potential.<\/p>\n

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\"Polar\"
\n<\/p>\n

Polar – Five Arrows<\/h2>\n

<\/a>
\nIt\u2019s somewhat surprising to find out hardcore bruisers Polar<\/strong> have been hitting in hard since 2009, yet they\u2019ve never grown past the level of being openers for some of metalcore\u2019s bigger names. However, \u2018Five Arrows\u2019<\/em> is considerably a new start for the band. With the relationship between vocalist Adam Woodford and former members \u201cdissolved\u201d, this outing sees Stefan Whiting (bass), Bruno Consani (guitar), Simon Richardson (guitar) and Max Flohr (drums) come on board to inject some new life into Polar<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Having undergone a radical line-up change, it’s no surprise that perseverance is embedded in\u00a0‘Five Arrows’<\/em>.\u00a0‘A New Mentality\u2019\u00a0<\/em>thrives with determination, simultaneously highlighting the musical power that has been injected into\u00a0Polar<\/strong>. Whether that be Max Flohr’s destructive drums or Richardson and Consani’s steamrolling sharp riffs.<\/p>\n

On the surface,\u00a0‘Five Arrows’<\/em> is what you’d expect from\u00a0Polar<\/strong>; brash, heavy, and furious.\u00a0‘We Won’t Sleep’<\/em> and\u00a0‘Unkillable’<\/em> are equally punchy with Woodford’s blaring barks adding to frantic nature. While a flirtation with electronics is hinted at early on, it’s far from jarring. After smashing through routine bruising metalcore slabs \u2018Dawn of a New Age\u2019<\/em> and \u2018All Hail the Tyrant\u2019<\/em>, the explosive\u00a0 ‘Swimming With Sharks’<\/em> arrives to questionably steal the show. Its robust build, sprawling guitarwork, and Woodford’s venomous vocal delivery conjure up a thrill ride, making Polar<\/strong> sound huge.<\/p>\n

‘Soak It in Tragedy’<\/em> serves as a cathartic interlude, providing a momentary break from Polar<\/strong>‘s relentless noise. As they soldier on with ‘The Hills Are Alive With the Sound of Violence’\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0‘Paranoia’<\/em>, their style is unyielding to break away from metallic hardcore battering. That’s not to discredit\u00a0Polar<\/strong>, as they’re able to routinely execute it in a muscular manner. The latter sees them at their darkest as a growling breakdown gives way to stabbing riffs, in part thanks to some assistance from Rachel Aspe of Cage Fight.<\/p>\n

As frontman and vocalist, Adam Woodford manages to deliver conviction and emotion through the wall of noise his (new) bandmates serve up. ‘Want_Need’\u00a0<\/em>sees him full of despair, wrestling with his emotions and the weight of mental health struggles.\u00a0 Furthermore, ‘Closing Curtain’<\/em>, with its mournful strings, gives the impression of hopelessness yet it’s their musical strength that fuels Polar<\/strong>‘s collective determination.<\/p>\n

‘Five Arrows’<\/em> may not serve as the breakthrough a band of\u00a0Polar<\/strong>‘s longevity probably deserves. However for those who have stuck with them for 15 years, especially during the recent change of members, will be rewarded with an impactful set of muscular and steely metallic hardcore. If anything, it shows aren’t going down without a fight and still have a point to prove.<\/p>\n

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What is out on #NewMusicFriday?<\/h2>\n

Opeth – The Last Will & Testament
\nBody Count – Merciless
\nAs It Is – A Decade Uneventful: B-Sides & Rarities (2012 \u2013 2022)
\nRedhook – Mutation
\nOcean Grove – Oddworld
\nPolar – Five Arrows
\nMallavora – Echoes
\nBloc Party – A Weekend In The City: B-Sides
\nRival Sons – Pair of Aces, Pt.1
\nPitchshifter – Peel Sessions 1991-93
\nHawthorne Heights & Emery – Split EP
\nMudshark – Beware of the German Shepherd
\nK. Soto – Your Love Is Conditional
\nScarlet House – Homecoming
\nSuffer No Fools – To Live Is To Suffer
\nCoilguns – Odd Love
\nBoy Bleach – The Beautiful Blue
\nAfter Smoke Clears – Intentions
\nThe Anix – Voltage
\nMac Glocky – Fantasy Covers, Vol. 3
\nHealthy Junkies – Listen To The Mad
\nFriko – Where We’ve Been, Where We Go From Here (Expanded Edition)
\nXandria – Universal Tales
\nScarlatamusic – Ascendance
\nConjonctive – Mis\u00e8re de Poussi\u00e8re
\nVOIL\u00c0 – Glass Half Empty (Part II)
\nTurnpike – Straight To The Domes Of Your Heads
\nTrynity – Contradictions
\nOrder 46 – Rorschach Resonance
\nRise Upon – The Dimming Effect<\/p>\n

If you think I’ve missed something or have a new album\/EP\/song to tell us about, tell us about it here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n