Posts Tagged ‘Industrial Sludge Metal’

Philadelphia’s industrial sludge metallers WORST ONES is back with a new powerful single, entitled ‘Deny Reality’. The song channels the bleak pulse of Godflesh, the twisted hooks of Nine Inch Nails and Marilyn Manson, and the sample-driven chaos of Skinny Puppy, creating something both claustrophobic and hypnotic.

‘Deny Reality’ is a mid-tempo industrial sludge anthem built on relentless electronic percussion and skittering hi-hats that slice through layers of noise loops. The guitars have been shredded, resampled, and reconstructed into something ripped and inhuman. A towering chorus cuts through the haze, while a crushing breakdown in the middle drags the listener deeper into heaviness.

Lyrically, ‘Deny Reality’ confronts the culture of wilful ignorance that has metastasized into complicity. Lines like “Cast out your empathy, behold your tragedy” and “My nightmares are dreams, you deny reality” attack the blindness that sustains power and allows violence to thrive. The song reflects a world where denial has become survival, even as that denial drives us toward collapse. In its imagery of poisoned breath, hollow faith, and the erasure of empathy, the track positions ignorance not as escape but as the very engine of destruction.

In addition to its digital release, Deny Reality will appear on Abolish ICE, a compilation CD of Philadelphia-area metal, hardcore, and punk bands. The CD features 16 artists, including Trunk, L.M.I., Sunrot, Boozewa, SOJI, Detox Meds, and Get Well. Copies are available from the bands in exchange for donations to Juntos, a community-led Latine immigrant rights organization based in Philadelphia. Through this release, WORST ONES aligns its music with direct action, using its sound as both protest and support for those most affected by systemic oppression. With Deny Reality, the band continues the mission of turning noise into resistance. The result is not just another sludge anthem, but a dirge for a society choking on its own denial and a demand to confront the truth, no matter how unbearable.

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Worst Ones band photo(1)

Industrial Sludge Metal Band WORST ONES Unleashes New EP Cold Case Against Institutions Carrying Out Cruelty.

Philadelphia’s industrial sludge metallers WORST ONES are ready to come back with a new EP, after releasing the single ‘Vex’ in March this year. The new effort is called ‘Cold Case’ and it is composed by the title-track and a remix version of the same.

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‘Cold Case’ is a searing indictment of power, complicity, and the violence hidden in plain sight. Built on punishing industrial grooves, a 303 bassline, and layers of moody textures and noise scorched guitars, the track hits with a menacing, high energy momentum that channels the raw intensity of Twitch era Ministry and Skinny Puppy, the gritty pulse of Die Warzau, and the impactful aggression of The Prodigy.

Lyrically, it exposes how institutions carry out cruelty with precision while society turns away, pretending not to see the blood on its hands. The phrase “just another cold case” becomes a symbol of willful ignorance, where injustice is not buried because it is unsolvable, but because it is inconvenient. The chorusʼ imagery – “up against the wall / going in for the kill” – evokes violent repression and execution, while the line “every sick and nightmare reason comes to life” suggests how dark motives are brought to the surface and acted upon. Even in the face of horror, the masses “rally in their fervor,” a reference to mob mentality and blind nationalism. Violence is not just permitted; it is ritualized. Power is the culture, and the aftermath is “a feast for vultures.”

But at its heart, ‘Cold Case’ is a protest. It ends not just in defiance with “I wonʼt fall in fear,” but with a warning: “Now you’re sick, their eyes can see it.” The mask has slipped. Itʼs a refusal to be complicit and a demand to confront the truth, even when it burns.

‘Cold Case’ was written and recorded by Drew Ew. Mixed and mastered by Jared Birdseye. Promo Photography by Luz Karolina Sanchez. Live photography by Vinny Barreras. Cover and logo by Drew Ew except “deathmetallogo” by Darren Adcock. Music Video by Drew Ew.

WORST ONES is:

Drew Ew – Vocals, Guitar, Programming

Doppleganga – Drums, Programming

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