UK grime-metal quintet HACKTIVIST have released a video for their crushing new single “Hyperdialect”, the title track from their eagerly anticipated new album, due for release on 18th June via UNFD. The single features a guest appearance from Aaron Matts, vocalist of ten56. and former vocalist of Betraying The Martyrs.
Co-vocalist Jot Maxi comments: “This single is about trying to describe our signature sound and how we use it. If our band was a comic book hero, then ‘Hyperdialect’ would be their weapon or superpower! It’s our method of attack, our way of putting our governments and mainstream medias in the crosshairs. But rather than brute force we use ‘Hyperdialect’ to strike back.Technically you could say that all Hacktivist music is ‘Hyperdialect’. That’s one of the reasons we also chose it as an album title, this song then stands as an autological explanation of itself as a theory”.
Aaron Matts adds: “Being a part of Hacktivist’s hard-hitting movement was a task that I took huge pleasure in; when the band briefed me on the track and its meaning, we were still in a pool of uncertainty in the process of ironing out what Brexit would mean to us all. As a British musician living overseas, this was the perfect opportunity for me to focus my frustration and upcoming hardships concerning the situation, and I’m incredibly proud of the result and to be a part of Hacktivist’s legendary legacy”.
Hacktivist will also bring “Hyperdialect” to life on festival stages later this year, having been confirmed to appear at Bloodstock and Slam Dunk Festival.
Question everything. Consider your sources. Be wary of ulterior motives, insidious media narratives and even your own unconscious bias. Trust sparingly and try to make smart, informed choices. As the world slides further into ruin at the behest of old, rich white men ruling with catastrophic, zero-sum thinking, it’s more important than ever to be vigilant and fight back against the forces that be who seem hell-bent on creating a dystopian future for us all.
Luckily, Hacktivist are back to help cut through the noise and bullshit, tooled-up and ready to attack with renewed vigour and reinforced ranks; with Jot Maxi and J. Hurley now sharing the vocal and lyrical load, drummer Rich Hawking and bassist Josh Gurner bringing the beats and rhythms, and guitarist and production don James Hewitt fleshing out the group’s genre-fluid muscle. Hewitt played a very active role in Hacktivist’s writing and recording process, bringing a new and compelling dynamic to the table.
In 2016, when Hacktivist initially set sights on their enemies with debut album “Outside The Box”, the world wasn’t fully equipped to heed their warnings and pay attention to its timely rallying cries. They return into a very different one, however – a world that’s sadly now all-too-finely-attuned to the horrors they first forecasted four years ago. In the wake of a global pandemic that has sharpened collective senses and exposed the systematic flaws across society, these should be times primed and ready for the truth-bombs that Hacktivist are about to drop. But recent hardships only amplify the band’s messages – these dispatches from the edge were written way before a virus brought humanity to its knees.
If all of that sounds grim and miserable, fear not, because Hacktivist aren’t here for unhelpful told-you-so’s or sensationalist scaremongering. What use would holding a mirror up to all of this ugliness be if there weren’t some lessons to learned from the reflection, or at least to offer even the faintest glimmers of hope? “It’s becoming clear that we are on the brink of some type of revolution”, says Jot Maxi, with no small dose of conviction or optimism. “Hacktivist are here to bring truth and positivity – the silver lining of a society clouded in poisonous fear. Hacktivist also represents a voice that isn’t afraid of saying what needs to be said. We’re already living in the future. We have the choice to either be shaped by it or to stand up and shape it ourselves. Which path will you take?”.
It was with those battle lines clearly drawn and ambitions duly set that Hacktivist entered into the creation of Hyperdialect. Starting almost two years ago and developing on the acerbic sonic filth introduced by 2019 singles ‘Reprogram’ and ‘Dogs Of War’, the five-piece felt fired up by their new working dynamic and the collective process involved, with each member actively encouraged to contribute ideas until the best outcome was reached. Unusually, for such a group of bloody-minded insurrectionists, this democratic approach worked wonders – a testament to how much they were all on the same page on these 12 tracks. Aside from guest spots from rapper Kid Bookie on the monstrous “Armoured Core” and Betraying The Martyrs’ Aaron Matts lending his vocal talents to the title-track, this was all Hacktivist: no filter, no frills, and no holding back.
