Last year, we told you several times to listen to Skullcave, a doom metal band doing extremely interesting things in Australia. It was part of a larger, most excellent year for the continent but Skullcave was the band closest to doom as part of it. Their emphasis on emotive clean vocals alongside cavernous chords drew comparisons to genre revivalists like Pallbearer but the band had their own take on what it means to make doom in the year 2019. Now, they’re back with a single and, soon, a video called “Offend, Repeat”, further cementing their unique tone and their unique approach to doom metal. Scroll down below to hear it before it releases next week!
To say I love this track would be an understatement. It has this tinge of grunge and alternative rock that’s hard to resist, especially on the vocals which run the gamut between aggression (more on the backing vocals part) and carelessness, melding with the feedback heavy guitars in a beautiful way. While we’re talking about the guitars, it might be worth pointing out that this is the “dirtiest” Skullcave yet, with a very fuzzy and “scattered” sound. It works incredibly well, both when it leans into those electronic screeches and when it chooses to be more direct, as it does during the brief interlude which leads up to the outro of the track. It then leans back on the filth, as the vocals return with a more guttural and abrasive edge to them.
By the time everything comes back around, we’re reminded why Skullcave are one of the more exciting bands operating in these spaces today. They ooze personality and their own take on things and we can’t wait to see where they go from here. You can pre-order this release, which also comes with a Fleetwood Mac cover (yes) right here on Bandcamp.