I’m late on this – I know but just ride with it. January was an amazing month for the metal and rock genre. Many albums dropped, new songs released allowing us to anticipate future albums were going to be blessed with, and a few covers letting us vibe to some beautiful classics in a different way came our way.
With all of what was released for January, this has me so excited for what is coming in 2025 but I wanted to talk about my favorite that came out in January, after what you can tell is months of hard work.
First things first, let me just say – these are my opinions and take a-ways and in no way am I trying to pretend to be an expert in the genres, of the bands, or anything of that nature. Just simply a girl who enjoys the chugs and riffs, death growls, screams, some clean vocals here and there and just raw emotion being portrayed through my favorite genre of music. I also am not going to sit here and use words I found as synonyms for the real words I originally used to make me seem smarter, more elegant or anything of that nature. You get what you get – so let’s get in to this.
The one I cannot simply get over is the magnificent piece of art Paleface Swiss released, Cursed. Though the shorter of their albums, I can tell you right now I had that album pre-saved and the day January 3rd came around I was ready to completely take in their full album. Paleface Swiss started releasing singles from this album in September and I was pumped. They have released a few stand alone singles in 2023 and 2024 but the predecessor album Fear & Dagger was released almost three years earlier, so I think it was TIME. Their release of their song The Gallow was an indication they are changing their sound ever so slightly but I can tell you right now, The Gallow FUCKED, hard. That song was released a little later in the year and STILL ended up in my Spotify wrapped. I was listening to this song in the car, at the gym, at work, in the shower, cleaning the kitchen, hell quite literally anywhere and anytime. So, needless to say, I was excited when Cursed was released.
Now, there are mixed reviews about it from the professionals and people who are so deep into the genre but me, personally? I loved it. I think the themes are similar in Cursed and Fear & Dagger. Paleface Swiss continues to distribute music with themes of mental health, personal struggles, and an overall violent/aggressive tone. Now, I am not going to compare the two because I think they’re both such incredible albums but they’re just different from each other. I will say, there were a few parts of the album that I personally did not like, but, I think when I broke it down between all that I loved versus the few things I did not – it really didn’t matter.
So, the first track on the album, I found it creepy and was building my anticipation for the next song so I was indeed excited when it wasn’t a suuuuuper long song. Un pobre niño murió was definitely something. I mean I am not going to stick around and break that one down because honestly, I think it’s just an introduction and continues to support the theme of death, in the overall. Starts with death, ends with death, but we will get there! Patience….
So, we are then introduced to Hatred on the album. It was an early release and this was EXCITING. I remember thinking “if THIS was the one they introduce in the beginning of the album, I am excited to see what is to follow.” The maniacal laugh Zelli does in the song made me giddy but I will say, the more I listen to the song as the days continue – I almost mock it now. Truth be told though, I’m honestly not the biggest fan on the part where he begins the spoken word/speaking portion of this specific song but since it was short – my dislike became indifference.
Moving on – …and with hope you’ll be damned. I really enjoyed the lyrics to this song. Maybe I am just a pessimist, but I am not one for “hoping” so these lyrics just rang a little more true for me. Let me be clear, I am a little comfortable with my depression so I am just like “ah yes! I agree!” But either way, I do agree with PS, I hate to hope. I did feel like this was very much their style but differs ever so slightly.
Don’t You Ever Stop was also the normal speed when it comes to the instrumentals. This one was not a stand out for me. Honestly, I vibe with it, don’t get me wrong, but I think my favorite part of the song was the lyric “don’t you ever fucking stop and shut your fucking mouth?” Because that part… real. REAL. I think that often. Towards almost everyone I talk to. But hey – that’s not what we are here for.
The next song on the album was Enough? and let me tell you – the message in this song? I love it. Addressing a message of toxic masculinity? Love it. And the hip-hop-y vibe was new, surprising, but I GET IT. The Gallow was the introduction to clean vocals and boy, I’ll tell you what, did people throw a FIT over it. May the old gods forbid artists use their creative liberties in the way they wish, right? PS said “We will do what we want” and released Enough? And did it make me giggle. I actually LIKED this song – outside of the message in the lyrics. They had a message they wanted to deliver and they sure as shit did just that. Also – the lyric “I always see you popping up in the comments underneath a post where I kiss my homies goodnight” is so silly. I love it. Mocking the little shits “I’m such a pussy, huh?” – SILLY. Then the part “come, on let’s give them what they want” and just breaks down into their normal style. Fuck. Yes. Letting the people know they run the show.
Youth Decay I found to have such a relatable message. As we get older, life literally starts to just… suck? The instrumentals in this song were on par with my expectations for a PS song proceeding The Gallow. The drops, riffs, drums, the vocals, they just all fit well and I am a biiiiig fan of the melodic guitar in here too. “My green eyes turned black with all the shit they’ve seen” – HEARD. Because as you get older life just kind of goes to shit y’all. Youth decay = adulthood? Now I could be interpreting this a little differently than most but…. Hey. This is just my brain processing. I want to note too that the work of the guitar around 2 minutes and 25 seconds is an absolute chef’s kiss. (Can you tell I’m a fan of the guitar in this track? Guitar. Guitar. Guitar.)
My Blood on Your Hands is fucking brilliant, in little words. Which is fitting because there aren’t really many words in this song either BUT it is a little weird so I don’t have too much to say on this one.
So, getting into Love Burns, you FEEL the rage on this one. Now in men, sadness often shows itself as anger so starting off with saying “I’m just so fucking depressed” which we got loud and clear without even saying, was impressive to me. This is a great track encapsulating the pain that is felt with heart break. The lyric of “how could someone so wonderful, so beautiful, so utterly free become so worthless to me?” Genuinely makes you wonder how someone who you once looked at like they set the stars in the sky – became…. Nothing? If you haven’t had this happen to you before – may you never have to. I think this was just overall my second favorite on the album.
Lastly, rounding out the album was probably one of the most emotion evoking songs in this genre I have listened to since Lorna Shore released the trilogy on Pain Remains. River of Sorrows is absolutely sublime. It does stray so far away from their usual sound, but I feel this was the perfect end to their album. I found myself experiencing such a raw emotional reaction to the lyrics and the music video. Now, the music video is heavy on the nod to suicide but when I first heard the song – I got the continuation of just heart break and depression. Finding the person you love, dead from suicide IS heart breaking and quite depressing, I just didn’t initially get that vibe. I do find it fitting and understand it a little more as I’ve continued to listed to the song with the video in mind, especially with how the start of the album begins with the nod to death as well. The emotion you can FEEL from Zelli in this one too just absolutely takes my breath away and makes my chest hurt. Takes “heavy” to a whole different level.
I devoured every second of this album. Though there were parts that were definitely not my favorite, I found this album to be everything I could hope for the evolution of Paleface Swiss and more. Some may disagree, but I love when bands expand while still keeping their roots. I do hope they don’t stray too far off their normal deathcore path but I am excited to see what they come with next, who they collaborate with, where this album takes them in the future.
Her Metal Manifesto 
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