Not just one of the most interesting and engaging bands to cross our path this summer – Neon Funeral are also about the most aptly-named, genre-blending example of creative freedom the indie scene has welcomed in quite a while.
Metal
One thing that stood out on the last release was The Haunted North’s fine use of contrast and their united ability to shift effortlessly from softness to absolute weight & intensity. Nowhere does this ability shine more brightly than on 21 Grams.
The Haunted North offer up an energizing live rock set – four original tracks, brought to you straight from the stage; complete with raw energy, passion, and that subtle crowd sound to remind you of the better days.
Awakening the rock soul within, DEARBONES have achieved a guitar sound with this project that’s all at once intensely nostalgic, gritty, and brilliantly well-suited to the emotional, passionate mood of the band’s songwriting.
Michigan doom rock outfit Bog Wizard take listeners on a uniquely crafted journey through a role playing world of fantasy & fierce musicality.
A hard-hitting injection of heavy rock and striking riffs, united with a powerful leading vocal – Bob Varo and Violetta Collaco showcase a born-to-perform collaborative approach on this mighty new single Your Last Breath.
‘I would say to him “Kurt, I know that you have many issues, but don’t you ever put your finger on the trigger.”’
The creatively uninhibited, hard-rock act Merrin return this summer with a brilliant fusion of versatility, superb musicianship, and engaging songwriting.
Tackling the topic of the Caroleans, soldiers of Swedish Kings Charles XI and Charles XII, during the late 17th and early 18th centuries, To The Fallen Sons is a uniquely mighty progressive rock and metal composition.
The whole tune screams purpose and direction and is all about feel. Harmonic relationships are employed on the guitar sounds to build warmth and develop interest, though the whole arrangement of Realise also (for me) replicates a transmission that’s broken, hypnotic and dirty, and no less urgent for all of that.
A band with precisely the tools and passion required to satisfy that need for energy and volume during these extensively still, unsettling times.
Perhaps one of the most aptly named bands of the year, Pistols At Dawn kick in with vastly atmospheric yet gritty rock classics, which work hard to embrace and transport listeners to intense new plains.