Heavy Song of the Week is a feature on Heavy Consequence breaking down the top metal and hard rock tracks you need to hear every Friday. This week, the top honor goes to “Silent Wolf” by Harm’s Way.
Chicago hardcore institution Harm’s Way made a valiant return this week with “Silent Wolf” — the lead single from their upcoming fifth studio album, Common Suffering.
The track marks the first new music from Harm’s Way since 2018, and it’s as if the band was harnessing pent up anger for those long five years — only to unleash it in one fell burst. Beatdown drums and pummeling riffs overwhelm the arrangement; meanwhile, vocalist James Pligge bolsters the sonic fray with politically charged lyrics delivered through abrasive gutturals.
“‘Silent Wolf’ was birthed out of observing a sense of persistent distrust in governing bodies and systems of power in our current cultural climate,” Pligge said in the press announcement for the upcoming album.
Based on the pure vitriol pouring forth from the track, we’ll take Pligge at his word. Dude is pissed. There’s really no way to posture such aggression.
Honorable Mentions:
Code Orange – “Take Shape”
It seems like forever ago that we reported on Code Orange hitting the studio with Smashing Pumpkins’ Billy Corgan — an intriguing prospect. We got to hear the fruits of their collaboration earlier this week in the form of “Take Shape.” It’s a theatrical track with plenty of twists and turns, hitting all of Code Orange’s proclivities: a little metalcore, some industrial, a hint of grunge-y alt-rock. Corgan’s distinct voice can be heard at the 2:40 mark in the music video, where he’s given a full solo vocal part.
Mondo Generator – “Death March”
Nick Oliveri will likely be best remembered for his time alongside Josh Homme in both Queens of the Stone Age. Oliveri was the crazy guy screaming on those one songs (“Tension Head” anybody?), and his solo project Mondo Generator essentially became his outlet for making more of those songs after leaving QotSA. On Mondo’s latest cut “Death March,” Oliveri remains his characteristically unhinged self — raw, mean, and not-to-be-fucked-with. He’s been a complicated figure over the years, but there’s no discounting his ability to deliver hard, punked-up stoner rock.
Poppy – “Knockoff”
Poppy’s “Church Outfit” was the perfect teaser for her upcoming album Zig. It was just bite-sized enough to get the point across without revealing too much — always a good method of hype. In the context of “Church Outfit,” the latest single “Knockoff” came with a major payoff, in that it sounds like a direct extension of the former track — almost like a “Part 2” (the tracks are sequenced sequentially at the top of the tracklist for Zig). Electro-industrial is a hot commodity right now, and Poppy is a major reason why.