[MUSIC NEWS] TO THE GRAVE Release New Single
Hard-line extreme metal squad To The Grave are one of Australia’s most uncompromising bands. They return on February 24th, 2023, with the release of their heaviest album to date, both sonically and thematically.
Director’s Cuts drops via Unique Leader Records and explores the band’s unwavering commitment to animal rights and environmental responsibility.
The band comments on the new album, “this is the refinement of our combined musical tastes, fueled by our sadness and anger at the state of the world. We made the music we wanted to make without really considering how it fit into any little genre boxes, because we knew if we loved it completely then everyone else would too. These songs are hard and heavy without being technical just for the sake of it”.
Since the release of their 2019 debut album Global Warning, the caustic five piece have garnered international success, with 2021’s follow-up Epilogue, a re-issue of Global Warning with bonus tracks, solidifying their position as “one of the country’s heaviest exports.” (Revolver).
To The Grave have steadily built an audience in the underground, accumulating more than 11 million Spotify streams, racking up over 5.4 million YouTube views, all whilst decimating live audiences alongside Parkway Drive, Polaris, CattleDecapitation, Thy Art Is Murder, Vulvodynia and Alpha Wolf.
Throughout, the band have gained positive media attention, described in the press as, “one of the most intense, enthralling bands the genre can offer” (Distorted Sound), and “home to one of the most comprehensive vocal performances in modern deathcore” (New Transcendence), with recent reviews adding that they “are destined for greatness. The future of Australian deathcore is here” (Wall of Sound).
Now, following a sold-out national headline tour in 2022 and revitalised by a new lineup, the band are more focused than ever, looking ahead to the release of their second album Director’s Cuts in February 2023.
The eleven tracks lyrically expose a societal and environmental hell on earth whilst pushing the boundaries of accessible extremity, full of barbed hooks, thick with atmosphere and drenched in groove. Razor sharp guitars played with an exploratory approach – blending everything from whammy pedal squeaks and chiming cleans to death metal chainsaw tones – are entwined with live drums to give a level of dynamism that musically sets this band apart from the extreme metal pack, yet they maintain the weight of the heaviest bands today. Vocalist Dane Evans commands a multifaceted performance, bursting with vocal energy from throat ripping dissonant screeches to low end gutturals.
At just over 44 minutes in length, Director’s Cuts is an album packed with ambition and conscience. To The Grave have never shied away from channeling the real horrors of animal cruelty and its impact into the violent, emotional intensity of their music.
Songs such as ‘Red Dot Sight’, ‘Found Footage’ and ‘Cut Off The Head’ perfectly conjure images of a world gone astray.
Director’s Cuts was produced by bassist Matt Clarke, with live drums recorded at The Brain Studios in Sydney, mixed and mastered by Lance Prenc at Prenc Audio (Void of Vision, Alpha Wolf,Polaris) in Melbourne, with album photography by Animals Uncovered.
Director’s Cuts Tracklist:
01. Warning Shot
02. Red Dot Sight
03. Full Sequence
04. B.D.T.S.
05. Protest & Sever (feat. Sam Crocker – Antagonist AD)
06. Manhunt
07. Found Footage
08. Axe of Kindness
09. Reversing The Bear Trap (feat. Jess Christiansen – Bled Out)
10. Cut Off The Head
11. Die, Rise
Pre orders for Director’s Cuts are available now!
https://orcd.co/directorscuts