Of Mice & Men spent much of the fall hunkered down in the studio working on new material with producer Josh Wilbur. They have stormed out of the gates with a brand new, battering ram of a song entitled “How to Survive.”
Hinging on hard-hitting grooves and airtight riffing, the track snaps from visceral verses into an instantly chant-worthy growl of “In a world that teaches eye for an eye, I’ll show you how to survive!” It’s an instantly raw ‘n’ real, pit-stirring anthem.
“‘How to Survive’ is an anthem for those who have been the receiving end of unmerited and targeted hatred and abuse,” said singer and bassist Aaron Pauley, offering a deeper insight into the impactful song. “It’s for the kid who was bullied, beat up, and ignored in school. It’s for the teenager who was told that they’ll never amount to anything and that their thoughts, feelings, and opinions don’t matter to the world. It’s for the person who has been told that they’re worthless, useless, or not good enough, time and time again. It’s for the person who’s repeatedly been targeted by those who only seek to tear others around them down.”
He further stated, “This song is for them. This song is for me. I am them, and I’m still standing. So, turn it up. Feel the rage. If you, too, are that person, you will know it well, and it will greet you like an old friend.”
The song is the first taste of new music from the Southern California quartet since last year’s much-praised Defy album, which Loudwire proclaimed “delivers the sound fans have come to expect (big hooks, monster grooves and singalong melodies) while still breaking some new ground.” Rock Sound labeled it “a lean beast of a record that gets right to the point.” All Music declared it an “album warrants attention for its melody, power, and pure catchiness — a new and satisfying lease on life.”
2019 is going to be a busy year for OM&M. The band will hit the road for back-to-back U.S. tours, hitting the road with Nothing More beginning next week. The band will then tour with Beartooth this spring.