Today, the Midwest Street Metal crew, Purgatory, debuted their new stand-alone single, the first taste of new music in a year from the rugged group, called “Stack ‘Em Up” via a premiere with Metal Injection. The band has also announced their sophomore full-length, the follow up to their widely lauded debut Cold Side of Reality, will be released in the spring of 2021 via Unbeaten Records.
“Stack ‘Em Up” is a direct call-out of the institutions that have been brought under increased scrutiny this year, or as the band puts it, “This is a very anti-police, anti-politician, anti-justice system song dealing with the corrupt, greedy, evil, vile, racist, hate-fueled things ingrained in the whole system that runs our world”. After kicking off with a sample from the 1986 film Cobra, Purgatory jumps into a chaos inducing intro that begs to be performed live. The combination of Matt Anderson’s raucous vocal delivery over Josh Mata and Brian Pilla’s thrashing riffs and classic-sounding production style quickly turn the track into one of the most explosive pieces of their catalog. Stream the track here.
Pulling from influences foundational to their world of hardcore such as Biohazard, Cold As Life, and Madball, the band is just as influenced by their love of metal such as Dying Fetus, Cannibal Corpse, and Deicide. Regardless of what end of the heavy spectrum they fall, the band’s overflowing supply of raw and untethered anger comes through in full-force in Purgatory’s latest release. Over the past several years Purgatory has become a rising force in both the hardcore and metal scenes, leading the charge out of the desolate Midwest with their debut LP, Cold Side of Reality. As a potent live force, the band has shared stages with such notables as Power Trip, Harm’s Way, Twitching Tongues, Ringworm, Terror, Merauder, and more. In 2021, Purgatory returns with their second and most confrontational effort yet.