11 days prior to the release of their first ever full length, New York Hardcore veterans BURN pop up with a new single – the title track called “Do Or Die”, a solid dose of interestingly structured metallized hardcore, produced by Kurt Ballou of CONVERGE! It’s hard to imagine it considering their prominent past, but they sound more comfortable, confident and edgier than ever before.
Led by vocalist Chaka Malik and guitarist Gavin Van Vlack, Burn are responsible for pushing the boundaries of hardcore since their inception in 1990. Appealing to different generations of heavy music listeners in their own unique way, they reactivated in 2015 playing festivals in the U.S. and Europe. Burn later supported Bane on their farewell tour, as well as Deftones for a number of U.S. shows. After an EP release on the Bridge 9 label, the lineup was rounded out by the incredible rhythm section of Tyler Krupsky on bass and Abbas Muhammad on drums.
“Do or Die” is the highly anticipated new album from Burn. The album was engineered by Kurt Ballou (Converge) at God City Studios and mastered by Howie Weinberg (Slayer, Public Enemy, Sonic Youth). As a whole this 10 song album is a melding of infectious melody, hook laden groove, and raw hardcore emotion. An invigorating modernization and continuation down the path these visionaries forged alone two decades earlier.
Lyrics:
Life shuffles and screams. Hard to keep your head right. Hard to keep your dreams. Hard to keep your bearing. On where you want to be. Hard to admit your at fault for living on your knees. Hard to admit the need. Do or die. Whatchu gonna do or die. Why shudder to think? That I could keep my head above water. I could even succeed. Climb out of my despairing. To where I can breathe. I can stand or fall down. If I manage to see. How desperate I need be. Sometimes. You have no. Choice. Ring the alarm. Awake from the gone, I’m ready. Let in more light. I’m ready.
BURN live:
September 3 Brooklyn, NY @ Diablo Fest
September 29 Rochester, NY @ Bug Jar
October 6 Seattle, WA @ American Legion Hall *
October 7 Portland, OR @ Analog Theater *
October 8 Berkeley, CA @ Cornerstone *
October 9 Los Angeles, CA @ Union *
October 10 Anaheim, CA @ Chain Reaction *
October 11 Mesa, AZ @ Nile Theater *
October 13 San Antonio, TX @ Paper Tiger *
October 14 Dallas, TX @ Dirty 30 *
October 15 Houston, TX @ Walter’s Downtown *
October 16 Baton Rouge, LA @ Spanish Moon *
October 17 Raleigh, NC @ King’s Barcade *
October 18 Philadelphia, PA @ Black Box at Underground Arts *
October 19 Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Bazaar *
October 20 Worcester, MA @ The Raven *
October 21 Poughkeepsie, NY @ The Chance *
October 22 Pittsburgh, PA @ Cattivo *
October 23 Detroit, MI @ El Club ** w/ Comeback Kid, Jesus Piece
