This summer’s a scorcher and no, we’re not just talking about the heat. While the scene is jam-packed with festivals across the world every weekend, we’re still finding ourselves inundated with fresh new finds through our social channels on a damn near daily basis. We love it—keep it coming! From Dublin to Los Angeles, Toronto and beyond, we are excited to present this month’s social round-up.
You vs. Me (@youvsme)
Location: Toronto, ON
A music fan recommended Toronto-based You vs. Me on Twitter and upon pressing play on “The Storm,” the guitar line took me back to middle school (not to show my age too much…) as it vaguely resembled a sixteenth note riff Blink-182 would play. Come to click on their bio and it reads that their influences range from Blink to Avenged Sevenfold to Metallica, Muse, and beyond. No offence to Mr. Delonge and Mr. Hoppus (does the “Mr” qualify their age, too?), but I was engaged by their slightly more gruff, assertive vocal stylings. Their melodic structures, lyrical prose, and catchy hooks are the perfect recipe to draw new listeners in from all angles. The band just released their third EP “The Book Of” that should be a catalyst for an active 2018. Looking forward to hearing more from this robust project and make sure to pick up the new album on your favorite music platform.
Dream Drop (@dreamxdrop)
Location: Gothenburg, Sweden
Anytime a band coins themselves as a “shitty emo band,” you bet your asses we’re gonna click. While bios like that and their hilarious Facebook one-liner of “we suck,” the elusiveness draws you in. Cleary, this is a group that saves their wordsmith tendencies for their music. Their video for “Point of Blame” has over 48k views and scrolling through the comments, we learned that the group has the late Chester Bennington’s stamp of approval and brought lots viewers to the page. We love the eerie artistry in the “Point the Blame” video as the lyrics cast a narrative on two people who are equally lost in denial, wrong turns, and approaching a juncture of accepting responsibility. The group oozes passion and we hope to see them in the states sometime.
Currents (@CurrentsCT)
Location: Connecticut
Month after month, the east coast turns up and continues to show us an influx of killer metal bands. This month is no different after discovering Connecticut-based Currents. The group is about the embark on a tour with Fit for a King and Like Moths to Flames spanning from Texas, to the midwest and ending in Florida. If you’re new to the band like us, check out their video for “Delusions.” While the double kicks and wailing guitars may sound chaotic, this is a refined band with poetic lyrics that dip in and out of reality and strike literal and figurative chords with a fun span of human emotions. Check out the full tour schedule here and catch these guys in a town near you.
Our Last Night (@OLNband)
Location: Los Angeles, CA
This is another one of those bands we were reluctant to feature on the round up just due to the fact that we’re embarrassed we haven’t “discovered” them sooner. Hailing from Los Angeles, these guys are kings of content as they regularly release covered that have included the likes of Drake, Maren Morris, Kendrick Lamar, and most recently (as shown above), Post Malone. It’s one thing to do a song justice and play homage to it verbatim, but these guys put a killer spin on this “mumble rap” heater. Enlisting the help of their homies Fronz, Tilian Pearson, & Luke Holland, what seems like an uplifting teen anthem quickly evolved into a screaming headbanger breathing a whole new life into this song that is both genuine and ironic at the same time. These guys will be hitting Europe this fall, so if you have any friends across the pond, give them a shout.
Suzaku Avenue (@SuzakuAvenue)
Location: Dublin, Ireland
Dublin-based post-hardcore/metal band Suzaku Avenue rounds out this month’s round up nicely with a seizure-inducing banger (seriously: “Diegesis” warns “his video has been identified to potentially trigger seizures for people with photosensitive epilepsy. Viewer discretion is advised.”). We know content reigns supreme in the music industry and with recording technology more user-friendly and accessible than ever, lots of bands record videos just for the sake of doing it. “Diegesis” has a killer video complete with sketches, photo backdrops, lyrics noted on occasion (but far from your run-of-the-mill lyric video). There are several elements of surprise in the short 4 minutes and 4 seconds—screaming lyrics, spoken word, breaks, transitions, and more.
Do you have MUST HEAR tunes to feed our earholes with? Follow us on Twitter @ZRockMusic and slide into those DMs. We’re always listening and can’t wait to give you another heavy helping of tunage in August.
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