Pupil Slicer, HEALTH x Chelsea Wolfe, Harms Way and More: New Noizze – The 12 Must-Listen Tracks of Last Week

You know the deal, here's the best tracks of last week.

Pupil Slicer – Heather / Black Scrawl

While UK mathcore outfit Pupil Slicer have been rather quiet on the live front of late, they were open that it was due to work on their as-yet untitled and unannounced third LP. The first taste of that record, double singles ‘Heather’ and ‘Black Scrawl’ are a callback to debut album Mirrors in their cutting, abrasive edges, rather than the more progressive and melodic approach that second LP Blossom branched out into. ‘Heather’ especially pulls from hardcore and crust, locking in an almost black’n’roll groove, while ‘Black Scrawl’ careens wildly between blast beats and off-kilter, odd time signatures. At once hearkening back to their debut while still offering something new, it’s an interesting glimpse of where Pupil Slicer might be heading in 2025. – Will Marshall

HEALTH x Chelsea Wolfe – Mean

Given both artist’s penchant for gothic fatalism and collaboration, it’s honestly surprising this joint endeavour has taken this long to come to fruition. ‘Mean’ is certainly worth such a wait though. A rare type of song that would be perfectly at home both amongst still moors lying under pale moons and in dry-ice scented rooms illuminated by strobe, this collaborative effort see’s Chelsea Wolfe and HEALTH perfectly complimenting not only their aesthetic similarities but also their unique and characteristic approaches to all things ashen in design. If you long for something gloomy and most moody during these pleasant spring days, then this will certainly do the trick. – Dan Hillier

Harms Way – Other World / V.B.Y.S.S.

The first taste of new music since 2023’s excellent Common Suffering, double single ‘Other World’ and ‘V.B.Y.S.S.’ shows Harms Way at both ends of their sound. ‘Other World’ is crushing metallic hardcore, double bass drums underscoring James Pligge’s unrelenting bark. Its breakdown is as hefty as they come, thundering and churning like a storm at sea before the song ends as abruptly as it begins. At the other end of the scale, ‘V.B.Y.S.S.’ reimagines ‘Wanderer’ from Common Suffering as a Godflesh-esque, menacing industrial atmospheric piece. Though it’s a rework and sort-of remix, it’s still a vastly different proposition to its original, particularly in the menacing atmosphere that builds dread rather than the typical straight for the jugular aggression. It’d be interesting to see this explored even further in future Harms Way material, certainly. – Will Marshall

FOXCULT – CITY OF RUST (Feat. Big Ass Truck)

Stargazers FOXCULT have at last unveiled their debut album WATERCOLORS: THE EMERALD GROVE (and yes, the all-caps is seemingly required) for September this year, along with its second single ‘CITY OF RUST’. Leaning far more into metalcore than the shoegazey ambient textures of previous EPs, it’s a far more abrasive side of the band than we’ve seen before, but one that hints at the wider album being an exciting prospect. It’s also got a feature from Abel Abarca of the excellently-named Big Ass Truck who typically make far more meat-headed music, but it’s a natural fit with the heavier direction of ‘CITY OF RUST’. – Will Marshall

Adore – Show Me Your Teeth

With it’s release coinciding with the announcement of their signing to Big Scary Monsters, there’s no surprise why Adore are getting the attention of the genuine taste-masters of the scene with tracks such as this. Born from months of sleep deprivation and the very real nightmares that such a thing invites, ‘Show Me Your Teeth’ is a biting and ravenous barrage of high-octane indie punk that’s far from being lethargic and tired. Rather, this track carries that hyper-manic energy that comes from prolonged insomnia and the crazed buzz that stems from the place where the land of nod and reality begin to merge. – Dan Hillier

Kusanagi – Dream Projector

The latest single to be taken from their upcoming record Paramnesia – released 30^th May via Ripcord Records – ‘Dream Projector’ see’s post-rockers Kusanagi offering a soundtrack for a sweeping mental landscape of one’s own creation. Inspired by thoughts of abandoned cities where natural green overtakes inhuman grey, endless oceans of cerulean and childhood memories of increasing sepia, here Kusanagi offer a masterful soundscape that can be intertwined with one’s own interpretation. Fans of pg.lost, Collapse Under The Empire or just brilliant post rock in general will find plenty to love here. – Dan Hillier

Bureau De Change – Resistance

One of the UK post-punk scene’s most exciting new bands Bureau De Change landed like an asteroid late last year with their furious and explorative debut EP Are You Flirting With Me?, four brilliant tracks of Heavy Lungs and Knives influenced stomping anger with a uniquely off-kilter twist. Not a band to let themselves lose any steam, Bureau De Change are back with another new single ‘Resistance’, their heaviest to date with frontwoman Flora Kimberly’s confident screamed vocals backed by layers of stabbing distorted guitars and driving percussion. If you wish Idles hadn’t been co-opted by Radio 6 listening middle class mums or that Amyl And The Sniffers were weirder and more combative then Bureau De Change are the band for you. – Tom Bruce

Our Nameless Boy – Dress Rehearsal

When Bristol based four-piece Our Nameless Boy’s debut album Colour From The Doves dropped back in 2021 their dynamic brand of emo made a thunderous impact on the scene, now with their latest single ‘Dress Rehearsal’, they build on everything that’s made them a name to watch over the years. Building from a relatively unassuming intro to a full on Thrice style breakdown in a four and a half minute crescendo with frontman Ian Gorrie’s vocals ramping up from a delicate murmur to a confident shout over a bedrock of gradually accelerating overdriven guitars. Showing off their entire range in just one song, Our Nameless Boy flex their songwriting muscles with both graceful cleans and harsh metalcore inspired riffs. – Tom Bruce

fromjoy – Monochrome

Ever since their inception, fromjoy have been carving out a very unique musical and visual identity for themselves, combining the chaotic ferocity of cybergrind and mathcore with the dreaminess of shoegaze while also using the broad spectrum of electronic music to their advantage, be it the blood-pumping breakbeats of D&B and breakcore or the soothing other-worldliness of vaporwave and ambient. Throw in a few well-placed thall riffs and you’ve got yourself a killer combo. New single ‘Monochrome’, their first release following their change of vocalists, opts for a more shoegaze and ambient focused approach complete with blackgaze vocals, taking its time to unfold and fully blossom into a cathartic release of melancholic, pummeling bendy riffage. Is this a sign of a different, slower paced approach to songwriting for future fromjoy material? At this point it is too early to say but one thing is certain, you should definitely keep an eye out for these guys. – Avrian O’Brien

Frostbitt – Boil

Frostbitt are one of Norway’s best kept modern metal secrets, making it their mission to combine elements of mathcore, thall and nu-metal into one big heavy, groove-laden ball of sound. On new single ‘Boil’ however, Frostbitt take a break from the usual thall tropes and instead highlight their penchant for nu-metal and math-metal inspired grooves with the catchiness to follow suit. Comparisons had already been previously drawn but on ‘Boil’, vocalist Ivan Hansen fully embraces the Korn influences, notably Jonathan Davis’s knack for delivering odd yet powerful and memorable vocal performances that express as much angst and ferocity as they do outlandish quirkiness. Nu-metal never died, it just evolved. – Avrian O’Brien

The Great Procession – Where the Sun Forgot To Rise

Imagine the progressive scope and ambition of The Ocean, the vocal grittiness of Will Haven and the heaviness of LLNN all coming together under one banner. That would be a very simplified, yet fairly accurate way of describing what The Great Procession have to offer from within the French underground with their new single ‘Where the Sun Forgot To Rise’, announcing the release of their sophomore album later this year. The quality levels both in terms of songwriting and production are deserving of far more than the 34 monthly listeners currently listed on Spotify and showcases all the makings of a band that could easily have its place on the Pelagic Records roster. – Avrian O’Brien

Pig Pen – Mental Mentality

While celebrities who made their name outside of music will often try and dabble in musical cosplay, creating bland or bizzare vanity projects, celebrity chef and actor Matty Matheson seems like he was born to front a hardcore band but was forced by fate to show the world how to make the best breakfast sandwiches to cure a hangover. Finally getting the chance alongside Alexisonfire guitarist Wade MacNeil, Matheson’s new project Pig Pen brings his charm and energy to an old school hardcore sound with surprisingly powerful vocals from the first-timer. If Matheson’s love of hardcore wasn’t clear from his tattoos and stoned line cook vibe (as well as his appearance on HardLore) then Pig Pen’s first single ‘Mental Mentality’ will convince even the most hardened Madball fan of his infatuation with the genre. – Tom Bruce

Most of these tracks and more can be found in our Essential Playlist.

Follow it here.