I’ve long maintained my love for the rock and metal genres, although admittedly I’m not very good at determining which songs fall into what category. Discerning genres is not my forte, so I often rely on Wikipedia and professional music reviewers to fill me in on what group plays what kind of music.
That being said, a lot of excellent bands that I believe fall under the category of rock and/or metal released new music this summer, so here are some of my favorites.
“Feel Invincible” by Skillet from their 2016 album Unleashed. OK. So This song is technically from last year. I promise the rest of them are actually recent.
I’m constantly surprised to know how many of the groups I already listen to fall under the category of Christian rock. Often the lyrics are broad enough that you don’t need to be Christian to appreciate them, and that’s true when it comes to this song.
“Feel Invincible” strikes me as a power anthem. It’s fun and usually pumps me up. I’ve only heard a few of the other songs on Unleashed, but I’d say it’s worth checking those out too if you like this one.
“River of Fire” by In This Moment from their new album Ritual. The theme of Ritual is witchcraft. It’s inspired by the Salem witch trials, which is fun and definitely present throughout.
“River of Fire” is perhaps one of the songs least likely to be associated with the theme on its own, but it’s one of my favorites because it has such a powerful tone. It feels like a song that’s saying “test me, I’m ready.”
There are so many other fantastic songs on this album that also seem to speak to a message of empowerment, and I encourage everyone to listen to all of it.
“Anyone Else” by PVRIS from their new album All We Know of Heaven, All We Need of Hell. PVRIS just released this album a few weeks ago.
After a couple people I follow on social media mentioned PVRIS I had to check them out, if only to figure out how to pronounce “PVRIS” (It turns out that they used to be called Paris but then changed the “a” into a “v,” although apparently it’s still pronounced the same way.)
“Anyone Else” was one of the real standouts for me. It definitely has their signature sound (a little dark, almost subdued yet very emotional) but also has a very distinct theme and tune.
I personally find their previous album, White Noise, more consistently enjoyable. But “Anyone Else” is possibly my favorite of all their songs. So that makes up for it to an extent.
It’s intense and emotional, and the music video is great. If you haven’t heard anything from PVRIS yet, this is a good song to start with.
“Do You Really Want It?” by Nothing More from their new album The Stories We Tell Ourselves. Nothing More is a band that had been in my periphery for a while before I started listening to them this summer.
I didn’t know how I’d feel about The Stories We Tell Ourselves because it is very much a concept album, with short and long tracks mixed togther.
To me, “Do You Really Want It?” seems to be asking listeners how badly they want change. The question at the heart of it is whether listeners are willing to change themselves in order to change the world, and I think that’s relevant and gives listeners something to think about.
“Feed The Machine” by Nickelback from their new album Feed The Machine. I know. I know you’re all judging me right now. I’ve accepted that. Look, it’s basically a meme now that we all hate Nickelback. I’ve heard all the complaints about their lazy writing and generic songs.
I do not disagree with most of the criticisms, and I do not hate the band. But this new album has potential. Okay, mostly I think the title track of the new album has potential. “Feed The Machine” is actually pretty good.
It hooks you in quickly, it’s consistent throughout and the lyrics feel relevant. They went (a little) more hardcore with this album, and I don’t want to ignore that, because that’s something I appreciate.
“The Last Of The Real Ones” by Fall Out Boy from their upcoming album M A N I A. I feel like by now a lot of you have probably left, and I get it. Is Fall Out Boy even rock? Is this song a rock song? I don’t know. I’m not a musician. I just love music, and Fall Out Boy literally just released this song, and I couldn’t ignore it. I love it.
It starts off with some great piano in the beginning and the chorus is strong. There are some noteworthy lyrics in there that have that Fall Out Boy way of sticking with you. So maybe they’ve moved more toward pop music.
Ironically their 2013 album Save Rock and Roll was almost all pop. But I’m pretty sure they’ve been and sometimes still are considered a rock group; So I have no qualms about including them here.
