Another holiday week, another insufferable evening with your extended family. For hours or maybe even days you’ve been forced to endure generic playlists with titles like ‘Rockin’ 60s’ or ‘70s Road Trip.’ If anyone needs an escape from the days of old, it’s you. We’ve got you covered with eight of the hottest new tracks – curated by the Hard Times staff – to listen to as you drift off into a food coma and dread work on Monday Morning.
Neck Deep “We Need More Bricks”
The Welsh quintet Neck Deep has been crafting infectiously catchy pop-punk since their formation as a duo in 2012. Now the band is prepping their latest self-titled LP due out next year – a full decade after the release of their debut ‘Wishful Thinking.’ The latest single from the forthcoming offering, ‘We Need More Bricks,’ has had our staff in a flurry and every window and glass object in our office shattered beyond recognition.
Iwan “Warm Primordial Blackness”
If you’ve ever wondered what At The Drive-In would sound like if they absolutely lost their minds for real, look no further than Chicago’s Iwan. The trio seems hell-bent on bringing screamo back to its gritty roots with a highly effective ‘less is more’ approach. If you’ve been looking for a sign to finally kick your synth player out of the band, ‘Warm Primordial Blackness’ from their latest EP ‘Instrument of Surrender’ should give you enough of a nudge.
Green Lung “Hunters In the Sky”
There’s like a 90% chance your deadbeat but fun uncle raved about Green Lung’s new album ‘This Heathen Land’ when you went on your annual Thanksgiving ‘walk’ before dinner. Just in case he didn’t or you got too stoned to remember, the entire album fucking rips shit. Don’t believe us? Just put on ‘Hunters In The Sky’ with its Iron Maiden-inspired guitar work and tell us with a straight face you didn’t immediately look up Cyber Monday deals on some ostentatious Jackson guitar.
Iron Chic “Ancient Pistol/Enjoy The Silence”
There’s usually nothing we’re more grateful for than new music from Iron Chic. This year, that gratitude is doubled as the band has released not one, but two absolute classics. ‘Ancient Pistol’ is a ripper of a track complete with the band’s signature dirty guitar sound and shred-your-throat scream-along hooks, while their left-turn cover of Depeche Mode’s ‘Enjoy the Silence’ is so stunning that our Editor in Chief has not stopped sobbing for the entire weekend.
Tyvek “Going Through My Things”
If you traveled home for our nation’s celebratory day of gluttony and political arguments with family, there’s a good chance you went through your literal things that your parents refuse to throw away as well as a flurry of emotional things. Both were probably overwhelming. Fortunately Detroit’s legendary lo-fi punk outfit Tyvek has penned the perfect soundtrack to your world with their excellent track ‘Going Through My Things.’
The Hope Conspiracy “Confusion/Chaos/Misery”
Boston’s hardcore legends The Hope Conspiracy just released their first EP in fourteen years, ‘Confusion/Chaos/Misery.’ It’s a certified ripper guaranteed to kick your shit in faster than a crowd killing asshole at a rec center It’s a good thing you’ve eaten too much this week to move, otherwise the title track alone would have you kicking multiple holes in your walls.
English Teacher “Mastermind Specialism”
Riding a healthy buzz from their debut EP ‘Polyawkward,’ Leeds indie quartet English Teacher has been steadily releasing singles for a seemingly yet-to-be-announced LP. Their latest, ‘Mastermind Specialism,’ is a gorgeous meditation on the listlessness that often accompanies modern adulthood. Lily Fontaine’s signature vulnerability paints a harrowing portrait of decision fatigue that seems to go even deeper than your typical night of choosing something to watch on Netflix, but you’re bound to be drawn in regardless.
We get it. Eight songs aren’t nearly enough to satiate your undying greed and hunger for clout. That’s why we’ve added every song ever featured in this column to an ever-growing and increasingly disorienting playlist. Click here to like, follow, listen, and never run out of songs to lord over your friends again!