New Music

DEAFHEAVEN is back with “Magnolia”!

1 min read

Deafheaven’s latest venture, Lonely People With Power, lands on March 28. It arrives as their sixth studio album, the first on Roadrunner Records, and marks a departure from the more melodic and alternative direction of 2021’s Infinite Granite. The new single “Magnolia” indicates a forceful return to heavier territory, packed with scorching blast beats, dissonant riffs, and George Clarke’s piercing, blackened shrieks.

This track delves into deeply personal reflections on grief, fatherhood, and the burdens we carry. Clarke’s shrieks underline the bleak tone of these lyrics, a sharp contrast to the subdued vocals on Infinite Granite.

Deafheaven

Justin Meldal-Johnsen, who guided Infinite Granite, is back in the producer’s chair.

The album was recorded and produced by Meldal-Johnsen and mixed by Zach Weeks of GodCity Studio (Kurt Ballou’s space). It features contributions from Boy Harsher’s Jae Matthews and Interpol’s Paul Banks—two intriguing choices for guest spots on a record that embraces the band’s black metal roots once more.

Deafheaven—George Clarke on vocals, guitarists Kerry McCoy and Shiv Mehra, bassist Christopher Johnson, and drummer Daniel Tracy—were known primarily for their explosive and dramatic form of metal, though they took a risk by stripping down the aggression on Infinite Granite.

“Magnolia” shows they haven’t lost their edge.

They’re drawing on core elements they honed before—and longtime listeners who admired the band’s early black-metal brilliance should find something familiar here. Still, their willingness to evolve remains, evident in the choice to invite Jae Matthews and Paul Banks, and to keep Meldal-Johnsen’s production approach for what seems like a cohesive step forward. The band’s adventurous spirit hasn’t faded, but “Magnolia” and its unflinching heaviness indicate they’re ready to revisit the sound that first put them on the map.

The new music video for “Magnolia,” shot in black and white by directors Sean Stout and Chelsea Jade, channels the band’s raw intensity without the layering of post-rock or shoegaze elements that dominated their last album.

Instead, it’s as punishing as certain moments on their 2015 record New Bermuda, though the journey they’ve taken since has broadened their sonic palette. This time, the emphasis is back on relentless riffing, blast beats, and Clarke’s throat-rending screams.

Deafheaven

Lonely People With Power arrives three years after Infinite Granite and after the band wrapped a 10th-anniversary tour for Sunbather. Their signing to Roadrunner signals a new chapter, following earlier releases on Deathwish, Anti-, and Sargent House.

The album’s tracklist are below:

01 Incidental I
02 Doberman
03 Magnolia
04 The Garden Route
05 Heathen
06 Amethyst
07 Incidental II [ft. Jae Matthews]
08 Revelator
09 Body Behavior
10 Incidental III [ft. Paul Banks]
11 Winona
12 The Marvelous Orange Tree

The band has also confirmed an exclusive “honeyed heat” 2LP vinyl variant limited to 500 copies.

Karol Kamiński

DIY rock music enthusiast and web-zine publisher from Warsaw, Poland. Supporting DIY ethics, local artists and promoting hardcore punk, rock, post rock and alternative music of all kinds via IDIOTEQ online channels.
Contact via [email protected]

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