METZ: A Boat to Drown In
Pummelling guitar, jackhammer percussion, and hoarsely shouted vocals grab your attention for all eight minutes of the cut.
By Kerry Doole
METZ - A Boat to Drown In (Royal Mountain Records/Sub Pop): The Toronto hard rock trio with an international following has announced that its next album, Atlas Vending, will be released on Oct. 9.
The first single from the record, A Boat to Drown In, is described by METZ’s Alex Edkins in a press bio as “...about leaving a bad situation behind. About overcoming obstacles that once held you back, rising above, and looking to a better future. The title refers to immersing yourself fully into what you love and using it as a sanctuary from negativity and a catalyst for change.”
The band has shared a new video for the track in which video director Tony Wolski sought to visually enhance and expand on these ideas. Wolski: "The song has a beautiful, crushing numbness to it that we wanted to mirror in the visual. So we chose to romanticize our main character's descent into her delusions of love and togetherness. At a time when everyone’s simultaneously coping with some sort of isolation, a story about loneliness—and the mania that comes with it—seems appropriate to tell.”
Such philosophical themes come easily to METZ, and they're framed in a typically intense and aggressive sonic setting that features elements of hardcore and post-punk. This track features pummelling guitar, jackhammer percussion, and hoarsely shouted vocals, and keeps your attention for all of its 8 minutes duration.
Atlas Vending, the band’s fourth full-length album, features the co-production of Ben Greenberg (Uniform) and the engineering and mixing skills of Seth Manchester (Daughters, Lingua Ignota, The Body). It is a record that reportedly showcases the group's commitment to creative evolution. “Change is inevitable if you’re lucky,” says Edkins. "Our goal is to remain in flux, to grow in a natural and gradual way. We’ve always been wary to not overthink or intellectualize the music we love but also not satisfied until we’ve accomplished something that pushes us forward.”
METZ broke onto the scene with a 2012 eponymous debut that made the Polaris Prize shortlist the following year, and signing to famed US indie label Sub Pop has helped bring them a large and loyal international audience.
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Publicity: Tom, Hive Mind PR
