Combining rap with heavy music is nothing new. Usually the thought of it makes me cringe a bit. It was a big trend in the late 90’s with ‘Nu-Metal’ bands such as Linkin Park, Limp Bizkit, P.O.D., Korn, among a sea of others. Thing is, most bands in the genre sucked.
Britain’s Hacktivist is bringing the concept back with a fresh perspective and it actually sounds good. The band itself is tight and technical, bringing all the off-time grooves and jagged edged riffs of modern day ‘Djent’ while adding other progressive elements. The difference is there are two relatively technical rappers with British accents doing the vocals instead of someone singing or screaming. It gives the whole band a very underground, fresh sounding vibe.
Hacktivist recently released a music video for “Unlike Us”. I actually got chills from 2:38 on into one of the tightest breaks I’ve heard in awhile. I have it posted below.
Stay on the lookout for these guys and expect news on an album hopefully sooner than later.
