Australian Heavy Music Legends, Parkway Drive, throw fans into a celestial riptide with a Music video for the new single, "Sacred".
This is the first time in 3 years that they have released something new. In this world of instant gratification, the wait for new PWD was definitely felt. The song swells in by way of synth piano/guitar/vocal fx ambiance and then makes way for Winston McCall's intense opening vocal line. From there everything is familiar yet
new, simultaneously. Big sound and big moments run throughout the entire 3:49 minute track. I said it was familiar sounding but, to be clear, it is not predictable or typical.
The structure and delivery are remarkably interesting for the listener. I really appreciated how they did not give us that breakdown we thought we were going to get, when we thought we would get it. It is like we were floating in space for a little while, and then that metallic "heavy heavy" came in like a meteor shower. I do not want to spoil the whole music video visual for you, but it gives me vibes of the Marvel Universe's 'Tesseract' (or Transformers 'Allspark' if you prefer), meets Dune meets God of War. I hope that description intrigued you!
The lyrical content is very thought-provoking, as Parkway Drive is known to have quite worldly thematics in their catalog. Although the delivery of their messaging can seem straightforward, the descriptiveness of the pictures that Winston paints with his voice are well-appointed and complemented by the instrumentals. The band is always keen to inject positivity, perseverance, and themes of inspiration into their songs. The line "Feel the Grass Beneath Your Feet, You Know It's All Within Your Reach" stuck with me from this one. Even someone like Glenn Danzig would find deep meaning in this track, especially the bit about "Where Eagles Dare". The guitar work on this song certainly soared high.
It is an exciting time for fans worldwide, as a full-length album is on the horizon, and
the sound we hear from this single is very reminiscent of their foundational sound. "IRE" (released in on 2015 Resist and Epitaph Records), is that turning point album in the band's discography. Before this time, the band was pigeonholed with metalcore and the essence of Warped Tour. We thank them and appreciate them paving the way for generations of metalcore bands. However, the “Ire” era is what pushed them into broader metal-genre waters. With such a heavy nod to death metal and various sprinklings of European metallic stylings, they transformed their sound at that point. Nonetheless, this new single thematically and literally links the past to the future. It will be interesting to find out whether the newer unreleased songs will follow suit or be completely different from the current offering.
If there is one band that is always working, it is Parkway Drive. They have toured the world (have you seen their documentary? link, playing the biggest festivals on the planet, and are always very consistent during and in between touring Cycles getting out there on the road. You can catch them on the Summer of Loud tour hitting the states this summer! Grab tickets for you and your friends here
