SINGLE REVIEW: Loathe – Gifted Every Strength

‘…Every aspect of this track is indicative of a simple truth: there is nobody out there right now that is doing it like Loathe…’

It’s difficult to imagine a more hotly anticipated metal release than this one, and that’s without so much of a whisper of an accompanying EP or LP. There’s a very simple reason for this: there probably isn’t a more important metal outfit than Loathe around right now.

Back in 2020, the Liverpool based outfit dropped their second record ‘I Let It In And It Took Everything’, and in doing so completely shifted the landscape of modern metal; ‘Two-Way Mirror’ is worthy of an entire essay unto itself. Even with a follow-up ambient companion record in 2021 and a single in 2022, it has felt like a long while since we have seen Loathe at full strength.

That has all changed with this brand new six minute behemoth of a track that puts the ‘progressive’ back into ‘progressive metal’. From start to finish, ‘Gifted Every Strength’ is an utterly electrifying showcase of musicianship that makes every moment of waiting worth it. Swinging rhythms coated in djent styled riffing give way to moments of complex, spacious musicianship, decorated with beautifully melodic bass lines. Vocalist Kadeem France sounds like a man possessed, with his most robust screams to date, before sweeping melodic passages flow over the listener, enrobed in shimmering harmonies.

The beat switch at around the 3:25 is guaranteed to launch you to your feat, as the track takes on something of a pulsing dance rhythm over bludgeoning heaviness, before settling into a bluesy instrumental marked by a stunning guitar solo. All of this is brought together by a superb choice of mixing, which allocates a certain dry, crisp sound to the highs, and a weighty sense of dread to the lows; it is a marvellous creative choice that makes this crushing number sound expansive and richly detailed.

Every aspect of this track is indicative of a simple truth: there is nobody out there right now that is doing it like Loathe. One can only hope that there is a larger project accompanying this monolithic single yet to come, but even if that is not the case, Loathe have once more demonstrated why they are worth the patience. ‘Gifted Every Strength’ is guaranteed to be appearing on many end of year lists, with the stellar performances from all involved building to create something that feels miles ahead of the rest of the heavy scene.

If it takes another three years for a single, then as the kids say, let them cook.

For Fans Of: The Contortionist, Thornhill, Deftones, Deafheaven, rozemary

Featured photo credit belongs to Steve Gullick.

Follow the band on social media below:

Instagram // Spotify