Australian hardhitters FALSEFRONT 45. offer up a powerful sound that aims to be as diverse as possible, honing metallic hardcore with elements of nu-metal, deathcore and beatdown.
The band, from Sunshine Coast in Queensland, started out with vocalist Oscar MacIntosh and lead guitarist Billy Skok getting together to write a few demos. That went well, so they began putting a band together, starting with rhythm guitarist Geordie Londrigan, who Oscar met making videos in the local hardcore scene, then drummer Ross Dowden, who’d met Oscar while he was on holiday in Australia from the UK and moved there permanently the following year. And the lineup was completed by bassist Riley Novello, a former bandmate of Billy’s in a band called Rimmy Grasa.
On the sound they’ve crafted, the band told us: “Our sound stems from metallic hardcore, but we do try to be innovative and take influences from nu metal, deathcore, and beatdown. No song sounds the same and we don’t want to be stuck to a particular sound or genre. If you like it, you like it; if you don’t, you don’t. We just want to write what we like and have fun with it.”
Our first taste of this is the band’s second single Pity, which features guest vocals by Jesse Hudson from Brisbane band ZUKØ and was released at the end of last month. It starts out with big chunky guitars kicking into a stabbing riff over rolling drums. That feeds into a wild opening verse with a mass of intense screams, before a “bleugh” cry is followed by thick low-tuned guitars before a driving riff. That drops into a big breakdown with stabbing guitars before more intense vocals and a cheeky little guitar solo. It drops back into heavy guitars and screams, before a crushing blast of low-tuned guitars and big cymbal hits bring the track to a lively conclusion.
On the track, the band said: “The response has been incredible! Our first release was definitely a more palatable track for a broader range of listeners with the classic verse, chorus, verse, chorus blueprint. We knew that Pity was a heavier, faster, and more aggressive track. But we did not anticipate how much love we would receive from it. Jesse jumping in on the vocal feature last minute really tied the track together, and his higher-ranged screams were a great contrast to Oscar’s low growls. Pity is just straight to the point, aggressive, and in your face.”
That follows on from the band’s powerful debut single Despise, which opens up with a thick bassline and drums before a funky little high-pitched guitar over chunky chords. A guitar riff kicks in and feeds into an intense verse, which gives way to gruff vocals that flow into a big chorus supported by more melodic guitars. That drops into screams and a cheeky “bleugh,” before picking up pace and flowing into another chorus. The pace drops out of the chorus, then a stabbing riff and rolling drums are joined by intense vocals before chunky guitars and a filthy growl bring the track to a close.
That gives us a taste for what to expect from the band’s upcoming EP, on which they tell us: “In regards to the EP, we have three new tracks fully recorded and are in the mixing process at the moment. We are expecting it to be released around the middle of this year. These three new tracks are what’s really going to define our sound, and we’re really excited for people to hear them!”
The FALSEFRONT.45 sound draws infleunce from the likes of Guilt Trip, Stick To Your Guns, Boundaries, Machine Head and many more. And on what inspires them to write music, they explain: “Oscar’s lyrics talk about standing up for yourself and not letting people push you around, narcissism, and sexual violence towards women. We want our shows to be a safe space, and by talking/writing about these uncomfortable topics, we hope to bring more attention to those disgusting behaviours and make people feel more comfortable calling out that bullshit.”
FALSEFRONT.45’s debut EP should be out later this year, and the band has more gigs line up and ready to be announced.
You can follow FALSEFRONT.45 on Facebook and Instagram, and check out their music on Spotify, Apple Music, Deezer and YouTube.
Listen to FALSEFRONT.45 and more new bands on our Spotify playlists GigRadar Core and GigRadar Metal
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