After sharing my favourite hardcore/metalcore songs in my previous post. I thought I would now share my favourite rock albums that pump me up and motivate me to finish my long runs. My favorite rock and hardcore songs inspired me to choose these albums as my favorite. Feel free to watch my recent Youtube video where I share my other favourites too.
POST HUMAN: SURVIVAL HORROR by Bring Me The Horizon
In my previous post, I mentioned that Post Human: Survival Horror is an album for every Bring Me The Horizon fan. This album thrives on collaboration features from YUNGBLUD on “Obey,” guest vocals from Evanescence’s Amy Lee, Babymetal and Nova Twins.
Every track in this album is a favourite and all have highlights. In “Parasite Eve,” the female robotic voice saying “please remain calm/ the end has arrived/ we cannot save you/ enjoy the ride” is unforgettable. Even though “Parasite Eve” might be relevant during the ongoing pandemic, the song was written before the global virus outbreak.
Before the Babymetal feature, there is a beautiful interlude that transitions into Baby Metal’s feature. Baby Metal’s “Kingslayer” has Japanese lyrics, Oliver’s growls and screams. Can we also appreciate the cute “yeah” by Su-Metal towards the end? It works so well and makes this a standout track. After “Kingslayer,” there is “1×1,” the Nova Twins nu-metal feature. The London duo join in the second verse and deliver catchy lyrics like “me and that bitch, no, we can’t be friends.” Compared to the other songs in the album, “1×1”gears towards mainstream rock and radio friendly while tackling mental health.
WRONG GENERATION by Fever 333
Fever 333 calls their shows demonstrations because they will always bring to light social justice issues in their discography. All their lyrics tackle social justice issues: racism, gun violence, gentrification and Black Lives Matter movement. WRONG GENERATION is proof that Fever 333 constantly uses their platform to incite change in the rock scene.
My love for Fever 333 was further cemented after they released their second album, WRONG GENERATION. In 2020, the California trio released WRONG GENERATION after Jason Aalon Butler spent 13 days marching at the George Floyd protests. The opener, “Bite Back” is a hardcore song with heavy drums that calls out police brutality. The last two tracks take a softer approach, “Last Time” is a piano ballad that sums up the long cycles of institutional racism. Butler sings a sorrowful line “you said this would be the last time, you let us down for the last time.” How long will Black people fight for their freedom?
The Grammy nominated rock band closes the album with a Blondie sample in “Supremacy.” The trio deliver lines about white supremacy and police brutality. “Supremacy” is a favourite because of the melodious hook from Blondie’s “Rapture” and purposefully challenges bystanders “when we were marching for our lives / you stood on the other side.”
Who Are The Girls by Nova Twins
Nova Twins, composed of bassist Georgia South and singer Amy Love, should be on everyone’s radar. The London duo won best UK Breakthrough band, collaborated with Bring Me The Horizon and joined Enter Shikari as support in 2021. Their accomplishments and accolades are important as it is a win for Black fans in the rock scene. Their 10-track debut album is proof that they deserved to play at the Reading and Leeds Festival in 2021.
On February 28th 2020, Nova Twins released their debut album Who Are The Girls? under 333 Wreckords label. On their debut album, the London duo incorporate elements of punk, infectious bass lines and lyrics that confront street harassment. As soon as you hear Georgia’s infectious bass lines in the “Vortex,” you will know that the duo are the girls in town.
Along with catchy songs, the band released unforgettable music videos to support tracks like “Devils Face” and “Taxi.” The duo referenced movies like The Matrix and Kill Bill in their music video for their electronic rock lead single “Taxi.” The music video for “Devil’s Face” is a favourite: red everywhere, colourful makeup and heavy chorus. In my previous post, I mentioned that the closing track, “Athena,” is still my favourite song “and listeners understand why Oliver Sykes, lead singer of BMTH, shared that the band’s debut album was his go to record during lockdown.” Why not listen to their album too?
No Good Left To Give by Movements
In 2017, Movements released their debut album, Feel Something, that led to their popularity with their lead single “Daylily.” On July 24th 2020, Movements released “Don’t Give Up On Your Ghost,” the lead single for their second album, No Good Left To Give. I admit that this single took me a while to get into because it was a new sound for Movements but soon became a favourite.
Released on September 18th 2020, the stand out track in the album is “Tunnel Vision.” This track has the screaming and the album’s heaviest track is very early Movements. I fell in love with Movements because of this angsty sound through their 2016 release, Outgrown Things. For fans who enjoy their angsty sound and screams, “Tunnel Vision” will be an instant favourite.
In their earlier songs like “Nineteen,” I loved that Movements added a spoken word interlude. Even though I love No Good Left To Give, I wish the album included more spoken word monologues in the tracks. The highlight is the spoken word in “Moonlight Lines,” the tenth track, revealing their brilliance in songwriting.No Good Left To Give exceeded my expectations with its heart-wrenching lyrics like “send my illness/ into the trenches/ desperate to end this.” No Good Left To Give, paves way for new listeners to discover their new sound and older fans to admire their growth.
Use Me by PVRIS
For older PVRIS fans, Use Me is a huge departure from their metalcore and rock sound displayed in their debut album White Noise. Released on August 28th 2020, the band experimented with EDM and electronic sounds. With Use Me, Lynn Gunn takes ownership of her work with the band for the first time. The album cover is a black and white portrait of the lead vocalist.
The intro track, “Gimme A Minute” starts on a slow pace before Lynn Gunn shouts “i think i’m losing my mind” making this an explosive track. “Hallucinations,” “Old Wounds” and “Use Me” are my favourite songs from the album. The first two appeared on their 2019 EP, Hallucinations. PVRIS’s new electronic sound flourishes in “Hallucinations” while “Old Wounds” has Lynn finishing the song with an unforgettable scream that closes off with a beautiful harp sound.
It took several listens to get into some of the songs, especially “Loveless.” “Loveless” was too sombre with its heartbreaking and sorrowful lyrics but is now an acoustic favourite. Before the release, Lynn teased “Blood On My Hands” and “Mvdonna” and it was love at first chorus. It was unfortunate that these tracks were not part of the album and the deluxe version of Use Me with five new tracks. Despite this, PVRIS still thrives with their new sound and reinvent themselves as an electronic pop band.