Exclusive Track Premiere: Jesus Horse, “Home Invasion”
Earlier this year, six unsigned bands visited a Converse Rubber Tracks recording studio in either Brooklyn, NY or Boston, MA, where they laid down some jams at one of Converse’s completely free, state-of-the-art facilities with producer Will Putney (The Acacia Strain, Suicide Silence, Exhumed) or Kurt Ballou (Converge, High on Fire, Torche), respectively. Bands signed up through an open application process on MetalSucks, then Axl and Vince worked with Will and Kurt to choose their favorites. We’ll be releasing the tracks all of the finalists recorded over the next two weeks! Today, we continue with Jesus Horse from Montreal, Québec.
Imagine that you’re sitting at home one night with your loved ones, peacefully gathered around the television, enjoying the latest episode of Modern Family or New Girl or Westworld or some other program which is fun for kids and adults alike, when suddenly a tear gas grenade shot through your window. As you’re choking and crying and trying to register what the fuck was happening, a SWAT team kicks down your door and men with guns run into the room, tie your hands together, and whisk you off to who knows what kind of dungeon for “questioning.” How would that feel?
Probably a lot like “Home Invasion,” the new blast of what I’ve previously dubbed “amalgamationcore” from Jesus Horse. Although I can’t understand the lyrics, the title of the song certainly feels appropriate: it’s the kind of metal song where you can’t help but wonder if the vocalist is screaming because he’s angry, afraid, or a little of both. At just sixty-three-seconds in length, the track is more comparable to a sudden drop off a steep cliff than a roller coaster; the song is over before you can get your bearings, and will leave you feeling at least slightly concussed. Lesser bands make songs that are literally five times as long as “Home Invasion,” yet not even a fifth as powerful.
Not hurting things any, of course, is the production work Kurt Ballou. Kurt is the master of making anarchic rackets palatable without smoothing any of the edges, which is exactly what Jesus Horse needed to get the maximum amount of “OOMPH!” out of their music… and there is definitely plenty of “OOMPH!” to go around on “Home Invasion.”
Lock your doors, booby trap your windows, hold your family close, and listen to “Home Invasion” as loud as you can:
