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Banks Arcade Announce Brand New EP ‘A Muse’ Due Out June 28 & Shares New Single ‘Heartstop’

BANKS ARCADE
ANNOUNCE BRAND NEW EP
A MUSE DUE OUT JUNE 28

BAND SHARES NEW SINGLE
HEARTSTOP

TOURING NATIONALLY THIS MAY

An enticing continuation of their earlier works, today Banks Arcade return with the announcement of a brand new EP, A Muse, due out on June 28 via UNFD.

Evolving from the darker sides explored on their recent DEATH 2 EP, released in February, A Muse finds the New Zealand-hailing, Melbourne-based quartet shedding the expected and instead flourishing between moments of searing rock, towering hooks, dance beats and fresh explorations into heavy surrounds.

A deeply personal extension of DEATH 2‘s chaos and sonic metamorphosis, today’s announcement of A Muse is also accompanied by the brand new single Heartstop; a swaggering, guitar-driven breakup anthem balanced with audacious grit and potent gloss, with the track premiering on New Zealand’s #1 rock station The Rock.

Heartstop is a sassy breakup rock anthem, the band shares of their latest single. It’s got a bit of ‘f*** you’ to it, but really it’s just a fun song that was made to make people dance and forget about that asshole that broke their heart.

Offering a memorable companion to their recent new single Self Help, also taken from the forthcoming A Muse EP, Heartstop readily wears its heart on its sleeve with infectious abandon, with vocalist Joshua O’Donnell powerfully declaring, “I like the way that I move / When I’m not hung up on you” alongside a sauntering chorus backdrop. And it’s this very notion of strength in vulnerability that carries throughout A Muse, from the vehement urgency of opening track Alive through to the moody ferocity of No Future and beyond.

Ruminating on their upcoming new EP, the band share: “A Muse follows on from DEATH 2 in a much more vulnerable way. It covers a lot of personal issues from relationships to internal struggles and in each song I tried to speak with my own voice as much as possible as opposed to the more abstract stuff on DEATH 2.”

Via DEATH 2, Banks Arcade didn’t merely build on their previously-established trademark sound; rather, it catapulted their heady blend of hard rock, electronic and metal into an entirely new sonic stratosphere, while also expressing the darkest and heaviest side of the quartet to date.

A band who always wanted to make history, Banks Arcade bring passion and potent execution to their myriad of influences and creative ideas. Formed over a shared love of music with a razor-sharp avant-garde aesthetic, Banks Arcade have always teetered on modernity; a fact displayed firmly on their 2018 debut EP Endnote, its 2020 follow up Fever Dreams, and the group’s head-turning singles Roses and Drown, both of which have gone on to amass well over 2 million individual streams.

Releasing their full-length Future Lovers in 2022, Banks Arcade cemented their future-facing trademark style while also turning heads courtesy of their emphatic soundscapes, searing metal and hip hop additions.

Fresh off the back of releasing DEATH 2in February, Banks Arcade also supported metalcore titans Northlane nationally alongside ERRA and Landmvrks that same month. And after two years of non-stop touring, Banks Arcade will also hit the road in New Zealand and Australia with a brand new live show this May, with the Death 2 A Muse Tour set to compile the band’s best work to date.

For Banks Arcade in 2024, DEATH 2 was only the beginning. Don’t miss a moment of what happens next.

HEARTSTOP – OUT NOW
https://banksarcade.lnk.to/AMuse

A MUSE – OUT JUNE 28
https://banksarcade.lnk.to/AMuse

A MUSE TRACK LISTING:
01. Alive
02. Heartstop
03. Faded AF
04. Lost Cause
05. No Future
06. Self Help

New World Artists Presents

BANKS ARCADE
DEATH 2 A MUSE TOUR 2024

FRIDAY 17 MAY 2024 – TUNING FORK, AUCKLAND
SATURDAY 18 MAY 2024 – SAN FRAN, WELLINGTON
SUNDAY 19 MAY 2024 – DARKROOM, CHRISTCHURCH
THURSDAY 23 MAY 2024 – LION ARTS FACTORY, ADELAIDE
FRIDAY 24 MAY 2024 – MAX WATTS, MELBOURNE
SATURDAY 25 MAY 2024 – CROW BAR, SYDNEY
SUNDAY 26 MAY 2024 – THE ZOO, BRISBANE

Tickets from banksarcade.com

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Gig ReviewsReviews

[Review] Thornhill @ 170 Russell, Melbourne 15/07/2022

This was my first pub gig since Covid struck and I was ridiculously excited as I descended the stairs to 170 Russell (or Billboards as it will always be to me and those of my era).  As I was arriving just as the first band on the bill, Banks Arcade was starting their set, I expected a thin crowd as you often see for the first band up on a bill of 4. So seeing the place heaving already was a very pleasant surprise and it also meant I had to elbow my way into my favourite spot at this venue.  Either Banks Arcade has a lot of mates, or everyone was as keen as me for a dose of live music and made sure to catch all the supports.

Banks Arcade is difficult to pigeonhole (if you like your music in neat little boxes).  Their 5 song set gave us everything from the dark, heavy electronica of Don’t Start, the Hip Hop/hardcore hybrid of Used, to the very poppy Sick (that had a very liberal nod to Amity Affliction’s pop/metalcore mix IMO).  Describing something as “Poppy” is an insult in my book, but I actually really like this track with its’ many parts, tempo, and mood changes.  These Kiwi transplants to Melbourne are definitely one to catch again.

I’m afraid I do not understand the appeal of full-on metalcore vocals so I could tell straight away, that I was going to have a bit of a hard time with Gravemind. But amongst the demonic vocals, was a bass that rattled the mirrors and made its’ way around the room via the floorboards and some very impressive lead breaks. Soundgarden they are not, but entertaining, musically proficient, and well appreciated by the crowd they were, even obliging with a circle pit on Billboards diminutive dance floor. 

Dayseeker had made the trip out from LA to support Thornhill on this tour and this was definitely appreciated by the enthusiastic crowd. Henceforth, their style of music shall be called ”Popcore” as this was definitely Hansen meets Sepultura.  There must be a “Metalcore 101” course out there somewhere as despite the obvious difference in style, the similarities in guitar and bass with Gravemind were unmistakable at times.  But unlike Gravemind, Dayseeker has one foot firmly in the Pop genre, making it a bit more palatable to this old bag.  I was reminded of Bullet for My Valentine with the liberal use of a double kick drum and metal guitar in The Colour Black and Crooked Soul and this is definitely to be encouraged.  The more I’ve listened to Dayseeker since Friday, the more I like ‘em.  You are welcome back in my city anytime.

I love atmospheric Aussie Pub Rock!  Stick me in a room with Karnivool, Cog, or Sleepmakeswaves and I’m a happy bunny, so I was very excited when I started checking out Thornhill prior to Friday night’s gig and felt the goosebumps breaking out all over.  But listening to a band on Spotify cannot always prepare you for the live experience and the experience of seeing Thornhill for the first time for me was one of having my tiny mind blown.  It is many years since I have seen a front man like Jacob Charlton. His vocals are perfectly suited to Thornhill’s brand of heavy atmospheric rock and he slipped seamlessly into an impressive falsetto on a number of tracks.  Resplendent in white singlet and a lovely pair of red driving gloves, often taking a backseat singing from the drum riser and letting bassist Nick Sjogren take the centre, he nevertheless OWNED it.  At times channeling Michael Hutchence with “stripper hips” moves and other times, Freddy Mercury stalking the stage with half a mike stand, this guy was mesmerizing.

Right, enough gushing.  Musically, Thornhill reminds me very much of a heavier Karnivool only more tightly crafted with less of Karnivool’s weird mucking around with the tempo in a song.  And despite my aforementioned dislike devil summoning, vocal cord destroying screamo vocals, the occasional use of them is acceptable in my opinion and can add a heavy edge (I luuurve me a bit of Bullet for My Valentine and they are masters at this) and I was not perturbed by their use in songs like Views from the Sun.  There was plenty of light and shade in this set with tracks like the near instrumental All the Light We Don’t See (the vocals don’t start until 1:10 on the album version) and Lily and the Moon sitting in contrast to the heavier tracks like Arkangel and Coven

Thornhill looks to have a busy time coming up as they have a dozen US shows supporting Erra immediately followed by a week of headline shows.  AND, they are supporting the wonderful Butterfly Effect on their Australian tour in October.  Jacob said at one point that 170 Russell was a venue they had always dreamed of playing.  I say, dream higher, as you guys are going places and I hope you don’t mind if I come along for the ride.

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