Metz

The years go by, we get older, fashions come and go... but Metz does not give an inch in their sound discourse: on their fourth album, Atlas Vending, released at the end of 2020 on Sub Pop, they continue to spit out songs which are just as furious, stark and visceral as the ones that blew our minds in that homonymous debut in 2012. Or even more so, as they are describing the " crushing social anxiety, addiction, isolation, media-induced paranoia and the restless urge to leave everything behind,” provoked by these times that we have gone through, as they explain themselves.

That does not mean that their music does not allow for evolution, but if there is something clear about the trio formed by Alex Edkins, Hayden Menzies and Chris Slorach, it is that their commitment to dissonant noise is unwavering. Call it hardcore, post-hardcore or noise, or better still don’t call anything because what Metz does is fed by all the references of the genre (Fugazi, Shellac, Drive Like Jehu) but it does not sound like any of them. 

Coming out of Ottawa over a decade ago, if Metz's music was already one of those that gained an entire dimension live before all this, we cannot even begin to imagine what their return will mean next year, when catharsis, collective communion and pogos take on even more meaning. 

So, it's worth starting the countdown to their next visit: on April 21st they will be at La (2) de Apolo (Barcelona).

They will not be alone: Psychic Graveyard, an American quartet also active on the tense noise scene, will accompany them to present the songs from their second album, A Bluebird Vacation, released last year.