Comeback Kid, Gouge Away, El Moono, Bo Ningen and More: New Noizze – The 15 Must-Listen Tracks of the Week

Lots of music for silly walks this week. Here's the best singles of last week.

Comeback Kid – Disruption

Even after all these years, Comeback Kid are still kicking up more fuss than most the bands that they’ve influenced. ‘Disruption’, their new single, pays testament to such a sentiment. Taken from their upcoming EP Trouble – released March 15th via Sharptone – ‘Disruption’ is one of those versatile hardcore tracks perfect for either shouting along, two-stepping or even pulling off the most silly of struts. It’s the unfettered Comeback Kid experience, an energizing call to arms that can only come from a legendary band now over two decades in the game. “‘Disruption’ serves as our call to arms type song”, states Andrew Neufeld. It’s about just getting through the next day, or the next step because it could all come crashing down at any given moment.” – Dan Hillier

El Moono – The Charm

Brighton’s best El Moono are making some big moves in anticipation of their long-awaited album The Waking Sun, out this May, with the first two singles ‘Chains’ and ‘The First Man On Mars’ blowing fans out of the water with a new, noisier yet more refined sound. Latest single ‘The Charm’ steers the band in a different direction, building up tension slowly with reverb drenched ambience and vocals that show off a new side to frontman Zak Jackson’s voice, leaning closer to crooning cleans than his usual unhinged screams. ‘The Charm’ sees El Moono try a totally new direction for their sound, one that sounds both fresh and effortlessly natural. – Tom Bruce

Bo Ningen – The Climbing

As one can expect, the latest track from the artful Japanese noise-rockers Bo Ningen is a rugged cliff face of a soundscape. The first track to be taken from their alternative soundtrack for the 1973 classic film The Holy Mountain, ‘The Climbing’ is a bizarre, noise-drenched cut of instrumental psych-rock that perfectly mirrors the inherent artistry of the surrealist film in question. In true Bo Ningen fashion, it’s uncompromisingly unique, yet still irresistibly intriguing. “We wanted to make something more than ‘a band jamming to the film’ live score”, state the band on the soundtrack as a whole. “To do so, we tried to decipher the secret of Jodorowsky’s (director) alchemy to reach our own Holy Mountain, reflecting the underlying structure of the film—which is delusional at sight, yet mystically logical throughout—in each stage of the music.” – Dan Hillier

Gouge Away – Dallas

Returning last year with their first recorded output in three years, Gouge Away are back with their introspective new single ‘Dallas’, a song formed from multiple iterations and various attempts at crafting it. Written at a time where vocalist Christina Michelle was at rock bottom and acting recklessly in order to gain support, the realisation hit that changes were needed in order to stop hurting the ones she held closest. The song began coming together at soundcheck in Dallas and as such this was the name used during the writing process. With Gouge Away being the nostalgic and reflective band they are, they kept the name. Laced with vivid songwriting, subtle melodies and boasting a switch up whereby the song takes new form and feels more like an outward portrayal of emotion that matches the tonal shift. At 6:00 minutes long, it really is an emotive journey. – Jac Holloway

Gloves Off – Compost Feelings

Fans of crushing, chaotic hardcore rejoice, as Gloves Off have returned to show everyone else how it’s done. ‘Compost Feelings’ is the second new track we’ve had from the band in a few months which hopefully is signalling a full length. This track is more of the dark, sinister hardcore that the band are known for, with crushing sections giving way to infectious two-stepping parts that will have you throwing dangerous shapes in public. This is more of the old school metallic hardcore vibe than their modern peers, but they still manage imbue the track with an edge that will tickle your fight or flight sense. One of the best kept secrets in hardcore that hopefully won’t be for much longer. – Chris Earl

Sable Hills – No Turning Back (feat. Trevor Phipps)

Japanese metallers Sable Hills have built a reputation for mixing electrifying, classic soaring riffs with crushing modern metal punch and heft. For ‘No Turning Back’, the third single off their upcoming album Odyssey, they’ve enlisted the help of legendary metalcore vocalist Trevor Phipps of Unearth. ‘No Turning Back’ opens with an almost power metal salvo of riffs and drums, with some lead guitars that drive the track along beautifully. Mix in some call to arms vocals and some screams that hold their own against Trevors trademark barks, and you’ve got yet another track that could signal the Tokyo crew earning their place among bands like Bleed From Within and Orbit Culture, leading the modern metal charge in 2024. – Chris Earl

The Prize Fighter Inferno – Virtual Pioneers

While fans wait with baited breath for a new Coheed and Cambria album, frontman Claudio Sanchez is keeping them satiated with a new single from his long-running electro pop side project, The Prize Fighter Inferno. ‘Virtual Pioneers’ takes The Prize Fighter Inferno’s off-kilter synths and lo-fi drums to wacky new heights as a backing for Sanchez’s warm, soft vocals. Alongside the single’s B-side, a reimagined version of the opening track from the project’s debut album ‘The Going Price For Home’, this new single is the perfect snack in between Sanchez’s more substantial works. – Tom Bruce

Higher Power – Absolute Bloom

It’s been some time since we have heard new material from Leeds-based melodic hardcore outfit Higher Power, who released their last single ‘Fall From Grace’ back in 2021. However, upon their new signing to the mammoth Nuclear Blast Records they are back dropping vibrantly cheerful new single, ‘Absolute Bloom’. Despite being undoubtedly more melodic and poppy, ‘Absolute Bloom’ doesn’t lose too many of the hardcore elements heard in previous tracks and remaining true to their sound is irresistibly catchy. Simply put, an absolutely blooming wonderful track kicking off a new and exciting chapter for Higher Power leaving fans eagerly anticipating what’s next. – Amy Bowles

Timelost – Wet J

Mixing motifs of 90’s pioneers in the vein of Weezer and Dinosuar Jr whilst brandishing the edge being honed by current contemporaries such as Drug Church and Militarie Gun, the new single from Timelost is fuzzed out garage rock bliss. Taken from their upcoming record Drained – released February 23rd via Church Road Records – ‘Wet J’ see’s Timelost standing at a crossroads between past and present, with the track perfectly melding nostalgic blissed out garage rock with the kind of bladed alt-rock being fashioned by the hardcore-adjacent scene. Should one not be acquainted with this band and be a fan of acts such as Drug Church, Fiddlehead, Gouge Away and others of their ilk, then ‘Wet J’ is a perfect entry point. – Dan Hillier

Downswing – Deadweight

New York metalcore outfit Downswing are back with their second new single, titled ‘Deadweight’, off their upcoming five track EP Let the Life Devour You. Paired with a stellar music video shot by Eric DiCarlo of Square Up Studios; “Deadweight” sets the tone for this new release perfectly. Mixing the styles of bands like Wage War with the likes of Bodysnatcher, Downswing still carve a sound all their own on this new single. Heart racing drums pair perfectly with fast paced riffing, along with furious vocals. This three and a half minute barrage wouldn’t be complete without a devastating breakdown, and Downswing set the tone for their new EP with “Deadweight” and fans should be keen to tune in for more. – Nathaniel Maure

Boundaries – Easily Erased

Continuing the development in their sound teased on their last album and follow-up singles, Boundaries have just announced a brand new album, due out at the end of March, Death Is Little More. First single ‘Easily Erased’ is a furious blend of old and new Boundaries; scathing screams and skull denting drums open things up before a ludicrously massive earworm of a chorus comes in. Yes, this might lead to allegations of the classic “selling out” vague criticism when a band does anything slightly melodic, but that’s absolute rubbish. This has been teased for a while and it’s a realised vision for the band. The breakdowns are still gargantuan and Matt McDougal has one of the most recognisable, devastating voices in the scene today. This is one track that won’t be Easily Erased from your brain. – Chris Earl

falselove – candelight

Melodic hardcore newcomers falselove have delivered their debut single this week in the form of ‘candlelight’, a refreshing take on the genre with subtle nods to bands like Fightstar and Thrice, giving a sense of nostalgic relatability. Formed from the ashes of post hardcore band Defeatist, with the disbandment still a fresh wound, the band spent the entirety of 2022 and 2023 honing their craft and working to create a sound that not only paid homage to their roots, but expanded on their wider emo and pop influences. Regarding the theme within the song vocalist Jacob Eynon explains, “it’s about fighting for a relationship when you’re against all odds and trying to show that outside noise is irrelevant. It’s about fighting for what you believe in”. ‘candlelight’ is a punchy, upbeat and anthemic single and balances hard hitting drums/guitars with melodic and soaring vocal lines. It makes for a beautiful blend and fear not, because the band have 5 more songs in the bank for their debut EP this time will haunt us, due this autumn. – Jac Holloway

thrown – backfire

Sweden’s finest metal export thrown are back once more with their absolutely incendiary new single ‘backfire’. Already making a name for themselves with their ferocious yet shockingly catchy blend of metalcore and hardcore, this latest track is the perfect example of everything that is exciting about them. From the absolutely filthy opening riff to rap-styled vocal flows, everything about this track is effortlessly cool. Marcus Lundqvist is a powerhouse of a vocalist, with a brutal, snarling timbre to his screams, making lyrics such as ‘I am living inside your head/You want me gone but I think I’ll stay’ utterly and electrifyingly menacing. Whilst the front half of the track is a raw yet groove-laden beast, the tempo change in the back half is truly when it explodes, with vocals that are little more than a growl layered on top of rampaging riffs and percussion. – Ryan Ward