On The Radar: Howlin’ Chip, King’s Rage, KuF, MOSAICS & Traverse The Abyss

We’re back with another round-up of new tracks by previously featured GigRadar artists in our On The Radar feature. This round-up brings you a wide variety of new music, from blues rock, hard rock and metal to a taste of 90s rock and some thrashing metalcore.

Howlin’ Chip – No Regrets

We introduced you to the post-apocalyptic world of futuristic blues-loving storyteller Howlin’ Chip last week, when he described his music as: “Like a post-apocalyptic blues sermon. Imagine the grit of Gary Clark Jr., the intensity of Rage Against the Machine, and the storytelling soul of Tom Waits — all set in a dystopian world. It’s about heavy guitar textures, emotional vocals, and music that feels cinematic and alive, carrying a message of resistance.”

We featured his debut album The Soul of the Circuit and he’s just followed it up with new single No Regrets. It opens up with a funky little guitar lick that drops into engaging vocals over a bumbling bassline, flowing into a catchy chorus “Now I’m standing tall, Leaving doubts behind, No regrets, No shadows in my mind, Every step I’ve taken, Brought me here today, No regrets, I wouldn’t change a thing anyway.” A second chorus gives way to a delicious little guitar solo, before the pace drops and the track concludes with another cool bluesy guitar solo. Check it out in the stream below.

You can read the fascinating Howlin’ Chip story in full here, and check out his music on Spotify and Apple Music.

King’s Rage – Fallen Angel

We first introduced you to Belgian band King’s Rage back in April 2020, just before the world went into lockdown. The band, from Mons in the Hainaut region of Belgium, told us their brand of hard rock was “powerful, tuneful and catchy” and was perfect for working out to, driven by frontman Ludo Colapietro’s keen interest in sport and, in particular, kickboxing.

But plenty has changed since we last chatted to them. As Luca tells us: “During the pandemic, we really took the time to focus on our sound and direction – and that led to the creation of our EP Stronger, which we released in 2022. The songs were mostly written during the lockdowns, so there’s definitely a raw, emotional edge to them. We dropped three singles from that EP in 2021, and overall, we aimed for a more modern, polished sound while still staying true to our roots. It was a real turning point for the band – both musically and in terms of how we work together.”

They’ve since taken a step back from music for a few years, before releasing their excellent new track Fallen Angel a couple of weeks ago. It opens up with a big chunky guitar riff before thick guitar chords support Ludo’s engaging vocals. A big cry of “I say goodbye my fallen angel” slows the pace briefly before dropping back into a gruff verse, and flowing into a big chorus. The pace slows with acoustic guitars, piano and a flowing violin, then stabs of violin, guitar and drums set up a big ripping guitar solo that tees up a final blast of the chorus.

On the track, Ludo said: “Yeah, Fallen Angel is our first new release in three years, and it feels like a major step forward for us. The reception has been amazing so far — people have really connected with the intensity of the track. We’ve had some great feedback with comments on the powerful riffs, the emotional vocals, and even the way we’ve layered in piano and melodies to create something deeper and more dynamic.

“Musically, it’s a dark and epic piece — definitely rooted in alternative metal — that explores the raw emotions of betrayal and breaking free from a toxic relationship. There’s a strong sense of power and liberation in it. The cover art says a lot: cut wings as a symbol of reclaiming your strength and rising again. We worked with Chris Clancy again, who also produced our Stronger EP, and he really helped us push the sound to another level. Expect something heavy, emotional, and liberating. It’s a track for anyone who’s been through pain and come out stronger.”

King’s Rage have a busy year ahead, including a special show in May that will be split into two sets – an acoustic one with two backing vocalists and a violinist then a full-on electric set. They also have a couple of festivals in Belgium and Italy with more dates being confirmed. And they’re working on more new music that continues the sound unveiled in Fallen Angel, which will have a video dropping early next month. Check it out for now in the stream below.

You can follow King’s Rage on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, and check out their music on Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube.

KuF – I’m Not Dead

Virginia-based rockers KuF are restoring old-school hard rock vibes having restored 20 years on from their first emergence. We first introduced them to you back in January, when guitarist Todd Leclaire described their sound as: “A blend of classic and modern hard rock. We take the grit and intensity of old-school rock and mix it with modern production techniques and storytelling. Think big riffs, powerful vocals, and songs that pull you in.”

Our latest taste of that is their third single I’m Not Dead, which was released two weeks ago and they describe as “a defiant anthem for anyone who’s ever been told they’re too old, too late, or past their prime.” It opens up with palm-muted guitars and little flurries before a cool darting riff and laid-back drums set up a moody opening verse. That flows into a big catchy chorus “Yeah, I feel the need to scream, Yeah, ‘Cause I’m not dead already.” A funky little riff kicks in and sets up another delicious verse before an extended second chorus. A bumbling bassline and stabs of guitar are joined by Alex’s increasingly intense vocals, which drop into a fiery guitar solo before cool winding guitars tee up a final chorus. Watch the video below.

You can follow KuF on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok, and check out their music on Spotify, Bandcamp, Apple Music, Deezer, Soundcloud and YouTube.

MOSAICS – Late To The Party

London’s MOSAICS previously transported us back to the good old days of 90s melodic rock when they were our New Band of the Week in February. And guitarist Stu Smith described their sound as “A combination of classic nineties shimmer with anthemic choruses and a strong focus on melody. We love a lot of contemporary production techniques and sounds, we love poetic lyricism, but you cannot beat a strong, singalong chorus. That is at the core of everything we do.”

We previously chatted to them around the release of Different People, which featured James McCartney, son of Paul. And the band is back with new single Late To The Party. It opens up with a blast of guitars that flow into a fun little high-pitched lick and drops into Owen Castillo’s engaging, laid-back vocals. The pace picks up in a chorus supported by shimmering guitars, then drops into a brief verse that flows straight into another chorus. The pace slows again with light palm-muted guitars and echoey vocals, before bursting into a delicious guitar solo to set up a powerful final blast of the chorus. Check it out in the stream below.

You can follow MOSAICS on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok, and check out their music on Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube.

Traverse The Abyss – Memento Mori

We’re bringing this particular set of tracks to a heavy conclusion with the intense sound of Scranton, PA’s Traverse The Abyss, who fuse thrash metal, metalcore and deathcore. We first met the band back in March 2020, when they told us: “We would describe our sound to people who haven’t heard us yet as an in-your-face, powerful blend of heavy metal and its sub genres. Each song brings its own vibe to the mix, ranging from thrash metal to modern metalcore/deathcore.”

We chatted to the band around the release of their 2020 single Ghost, which has been followed by a series of singles, an EP in 2022, and brand new EP Memento Mori, which was released last week. The EP starts slowly with a light guitar lick that’s joined by heavy guitar bursts in the intro to Reasoning. It builds in intensity with vicious screamed vocals and winding guitars before dropping into a huge opening verse. That’s followed by the equally intense Viewpoint and hard-hitting Pursuit, which features a delicious fusion of driving guitars and drums under wild vocals before a cool answer-and-response guitars section.

But the band sent us the EP’s final two tracks. Consequence opens up with a huge scream over a fun stabbing guitar riff, which drops into a dark and sombre opening verse. Screamed vocals take over in a vicious chorus with big stabbing guitars followed by cool little flurries, ending with repeating guitars setting up huge guttural screams and increasingly intricate guitars. A little “bleugh” sets up an instrumental section brings the track to an end, assisted by a big growl. Check it out in the video here:

And final track Manifest begins in style with a cool rumbling guitar and rolling drums before a huge scream ushers in driving guitars and drums supporting pretty intense vocals. Cool guitar chords come in alongside a guitar lick, before wild screamed vocals set up another fast-paced verse. The pace drops slightly for a chorus of intense vocals, which ends with light drawn-out guitars. Distant vocals creep in and gradually build to a huge scream over a fun noodling guitar solo that sets up a powerful conclusion. Check it out in the lyric video here: