Single Slam: Employed to Serve, Plaiins, Indifferent Engine, Believe in Nothing, Barrens, Judo CHOP!, Coiled Around Thy Spine, and Wednesday 13!
Today’s single slam features Employed to Serve, Plaiins, Indifferent Engine, Believe in Nothing, Barrens, Judo CHOP!, Coiled Around Thy Spine, and Wednesday 13. You can read our thoughts about the latest singles from these bands below.
Employed to Serve – Breaks Me Down
Employed to Serve release new single ‘Breaks Me Down,’ from forthcoming album ‘Fallen Star’ set for release on April 25th via Spinefarm.
Says Employed to Serve front woman Justine Jones:
’Breaks Me Down’ deals with the uncertainty of death and what it means for us left here on earth when someone you love passes beyond the veil. It is something we will all experience at some point in our lives and yet there is no one handbook that can guide you through the experience of grief.
That being said, it makes life more precious and motivates you to make the most of the time we have with the people we love.
A huge track from Employed to Serve, one with heightened drama and a solid showcase of the continuing evolution of this band. The keyboard melody is haunting, the clean singing is spine-tingling, the heaviness will rattle the brain, and the chorus is so powerful. One of the best songs they’ve released so far from this new album, which is both shaping up to be one of their best yet, but also their most accessible.
Plaiins – Happy Faces
Rock outfit Plaiins present new single ‘Happy Faces’ along with a music video. This is the first single from their debut album which will be released this summer via Long Branch Records.
Comments singer Chris Reardon:
‘Happy Faces’ is a fast and raucous punk indie song about the duality of the protagonists views of the importance of putting on a happy face to promote a joyful view on the world and being courageous, throwing yourself into the unknown and the compromising hypocrisy of going too far. Do you become a happier freer person or is it a mere mask obscuring a person’s view on reality? As the song starts it all seems to point toward the first but as the song progresses the protagonist takes things further and further. Buying a whole bar a round of drinks on his credit card without any thought. As he burns out into an insanity, screaming “Happy dumbass faces”.
Stupidly catchy, this new Plaiins track is really bloody weird, but so much fun. Super poppy, but with punky spirit, and extremely alternative sounding, this is what experimental rock sounds like when it comes from a super talented band. It will be stuck in your brain for days afterwards. Check it out here.
Indifferent Engine – Crescents
The latest signees to make their home at Church Road Records are Indifferent Engine – a band whose reputation for wild and extravagant live performances precedes them. The Cambridge, UK based quintet fall in-between the cracks of raging alternative metal and emotive post-hardcore, filling the stage and floor with more CRT-TV monitors than guitar pedals. Their latest single ‘Crescents’ is out now.
The sound of disorder, this new single from Indifferent Engine is unique. Proving to be as exciting and interesting as it is off-putting and irksome. The distorted groove, the barked vocals, the powerful riff, it’s a noisy approach that greets, but what truly makes this track special is how it develops. Getting more melodic, and then even more intense. What is this? Who knows, but it is mightily attention grabbing. Check it out here.
Believe in Nothing – What Would You Do?
Believe In Nothing is an Eastbourne-based sludge/noise band founded in 2023. They’ve now released the dark and poetic new single, ‘What Would You Do?’
Says the band:
The song ‘What Would You Do?’ is the first taste of the desperate and violent world we want to show. It’s a contemplation of public execution, humiliation and ultimately enjoying it.
One of the darkest sounding tracks heard this year, Believe in Nothing has crafted something with distressed misery embedded within. The thick and moody instrumentals, delivered with power, and flaring up in dangerous fashion in places, is so impressive. However, when accompanied by vocals that are impossibly intense, this track becomes something truly special. It stays with you long afterwards.
Barrens – Periastron
Dark post-rock trio Barrens have unveiled their stellar new single ‘Periastron’ via Pelagic Records.
The band comment:
‘Periastron’ concludes the A-side of corpse lights, at the point closest to the burning core of the album, before falling away again.
The track went through several different versions before finding its current form, but ended up “sui generis” and became the perfect first part of the albums midpoint, as well as serving as one of its strongest pieces concerning one of the albums central themes; relationships.
A dreamy and emotional melodic piece that showcases cinematic comfort and how that can transform into something unforgettably powerful. Of course, this gloomy post-rock sound is what Barrens are so good at, but even then, this is an evolved version that is more experimental than ever. Beautiful. Check it out here.
Judo Chop! – Stranded
Judo CHOP!, the six-piece melodic punk band from Melbourne, have released their next single ‘Stranded’ from their upcoming EP ‘Cosmic’.
This band kicks ass, and their latest single is another slice of lovable punk rock that gets jammed in the brain. Although here, they have a rawer feel, but that doesn’t take away from the energy and general catchiness, it just heightens the punkiness of it all. Check it out here.
Coiled Around Thy Spine – Coiled Around Thy Spine
The American Italian melodic death metal band, Coiled Around Thy Spine have released their brand-new single, the self-titled ‘Coiled Around Thy Spine’.
A manic head banger with huge riffs, massive amounts of death metal groove, powerful melodies, and an overall recognisable melodeath feel that sounds more progressive than ever. That’s Coiled Around Thy Spine for you though, always pushing forward and finding new ways to delight metallers around the world. It’s another absolute banger from the band. Check it out here.
Wednesday 13 – In Misery
Wednesday 13 returns with ‘In Misery’, the second single cut from his new full-length album, ‘Mid Death Crisis’, set to drop 25th April via Napalm Records.
Wednesday 13 comments about ‘In Misery’:
There are too many love songs out there about people confessing their love to one another. I wanted to do the exact opposite, and confess the misery of being in a bad relationship. Hopelessly, madly in misery with someone. I see it every day, people miserable together. I see it almost as much as I see people happily together. Some people enjoy misery, and this song is about enjoying that misery as much as someone in love.
A very creative Wednesday 13 track, where familiarity doesn’t feel like repetition, and the iconic artist makes classic horror-infused rock sound sexier than ever. The subject matter might be based in ‘misery’ but like so much of what this band does, you can seriously shake your booty to this one. Wednesday’s vocals sound great, the lyrics are clever, the riffs are solid, there’s a good guitar solo, and the chorus is very infectious. What more could you ask for?
Author
Employed to Serve, Plaiins, Indifferent Engine, Believe in Nothing, Barrens, Judo CHOP!, Coiled Around Thy Spine, and Wednesday 13!
-
Employed to Serve – Breaks Me Down - 9/10
9/10
-
Plaiins – Happy Faces - 9/10
9/10
-
Indifferent Engine – Crescents - 7.5/10
7.5/10
-
Believe in Nothing – What Would You Do? - 9/10
9/10
-
Barrens – Periastron - 8/10
8/10
-
Judo Chop! – Stranded - 7.5/10
7.5/10
-
Coiled Around Thy Spine – Coiled Around Thy Spine - 8.5/10
8.5/10
-
Wednesday 13 – In Misery - 8/10
8/10
