A hypnotic experience in the Canadian punk trio’s fifth release.
Canadian punk trio, METZ deliver 35 minutes of dissonant, hypnotic and articulate punk rock in their fifth album, Up on Gravity Hill, released April 12, 2024 under Sub Pop records.
Consisting of Alex Edkins on vocals and guitar, Chris Slorach as bassist, and Hayden Menzies contributing to drums, METZ fashions a sound on their latest work that sits outside of the heaviness of hardcore, pushes past indie rock, and exceeds the simplicity of classic punk into a signature sound worthy of its own category. Retaining the abrasiveness of their previous work while expanding into a sonic territory hinting at elements of shoegaze while evoking similarities to early Radiohead in their eloquent lawlessness, METZ establishes a feeling of nuance and maturity in their latest release.
Lyrically, the group explores themes of loss, love, disdain, and dissatisfaction with modern society. The album opens with “No Reservations/Loves Comes Crashing,” a nearly seven minute track driven by a nauseating guitar riff constantly pulling the listener in and out of center, reflected in the disorientation and panic presented in the opening lines:
“Feel love come crashing down / The world we built comes tumbling to the ground / There’s no time for hesitation / There’s no room for reservation / There’s no words for conversation now”
This sea sickness continues until 3:30 mark as the momentum shifts to a driving rhythm as METZ pulls their audience along with them into the next track under the repetitive vocals: “Feel love crashing.”
This angst continues in the band’s presentation of their resentment towards capitalism is seen in the track “99” in which Edkins explained on the Kreative Kontrol podcast:
“I walk Theo, my son, to school every morning, and we’re right downtown, and there’s just billboards, and bus stops with ads, and buses with ads, just everywhere you look. And I was just trying to think through his eyes… the amount of ‘buy, buy, buy’ being pushed down everyone’s throats all the time, since the moment you’re born…It’s just about when’s enough, and corporate greed in general.”
As “99” briefly departs from the themes of loss throughout the album, “Wound Tight” and “Never Still Again” return in the exploration of disillusionment and longing while sonically to METZ’s distinctly punk roots through screaming feedback and fuzzed-out bass lines.
After a seven track build up of snarling vocals, detuned guitars, and speeding tempos, METZ ends Up on Gravity Hill with a sense of inner peace and stability. Through thirty minutes of inner questioning, the group finds their answer in the slower, “Light Your Way Home.” Without abandoning the wall of sound created through heavy guitars and dense percussion, Edkins seemingly finds solace in the abandonment and resentment of earlier tracks as turmoil is replaced with a sense of altruism in his emotions toward the cause of his heartbreak:
“It’s never the right time to / Make it right / I’d set it all on fire / To light your way home / Light your way home”
Through sonic exploration and lyrical release, METZ offers an experimental take on where the boundaries of modern punk rock truly lie.
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