After forming in 2010 in Ocala, Florida, the band released debut album ‘Blueprints’ in 2015, breaking through off the back of singles ‘The River’ and ‘Twenty One’. The LP was an explosive hit of raw, unrelenting metalcore, shedding all nuance in favour of a direct assault. Their trademark sound was one of monstrously heavy verses leading to huge anthemic choruses. In 2016 the attention it garnered brought them on tour to the UK and Europe supporting heavyweights The Amity Affliction, Northlane and Stray From The Path.

On each album since 2017’s ‘Deadweight’ their sound mellowed gradually, with electronic elements seeping in, clean vocals becoming more frequent, and the overall polish of the mix becoming so sterile that most of the character was washed away. Following the launch of their fifth and so far last album ‘Stigma’ in 2024, fans were starting to label the band as “Octane-core” – a demeaning label associating them with the more radio-friendly metal music played on US digital station SiriusXM Octane.

With the release of ‘Song Of The Swamp’, they’ve shaken all the taunts away and unleashed something far darker than anything else in their catalogue. The track is ferocious in all the right ways – harsh vocalist Briton Bond sounds utterly demonic, the bass is earth-shattering, and the pounding drums do not let up. Wage War describe the song as “the tone-setter” for the full EP, saying “’Song Of The Swamp’ is rooted in where we’re from. Driven by Florida and the raw aggression of nature, it’s a heavy track built on tension and hostility.”

If this sets the benchmark for what’s to come, the full 5-song feature is sure to be a serious display of force. The band say “’It Calls Me By Name’ is about being drawn to your roots. This isn’t a concept EP but is meant to live in its own world. Five tracks shaped by Florida, the swamp and the relentless aggression of nature. Built heavy, but still driven by the hooks that have defined us. It’s our signature sound amplified and pushed further into metal than we’ve ever taken it.” The EP releases on the 17th of April, with this track listing:

1. Song Of The Swamp
2. 4X4
3. Blindfold
4. Karma
5. Purify

The band hit the UK last Autumn on Architect’s headline European run, wrapping up their ‘Stigma’ touring cycle. A further announcement this afternoon revealed US tour dates in support of the EP, running through April and May, with tickets on their web store. ‘Song Of The Swamp’ is available now on streaming platforms, and ‘It Calls Me By Name’ is available for pre-order through the bands official channels here.

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Sonically ‘Obliteration‘ sounds reminiscent of the now iconic post-industrial anguish anthems Filter achieved infamy with in the mid 1990’s, ‘Hey Man Nice Shot‘ in particular. Released in 1995 ‘Hey Man Nice Shot‘ was penned in apparent admiration of disgraced American politician Budd Dwyer’s public suicide. The ominous ode became one of the bands signature drone/dirge rock dittys, peaking at number 76 on the US charts.

In addition to the new single the band also simultaneously released an animated audio visual accompaniment depicting a post-apocalyptic mall goth girl pottering about what appears to be the bombed out husk of Hollywood. Having been atomically annihilated (or should I say obliterated?) the pixie-esque girl emerges from the underground clutching a cardboard. Whats in the box I here you ask? Watch the video below and find out:

The Algorithm was originally conceived way back in 2018 as a sequel to the bands grind-guitar debut disc Short Bus, when unbeknownst to either of them singer, Richard Patrick and Filters ex-guitar player Brian Liesegang both attended the same Veruca Salt concert. After being called out mid-performance by front woman Louise Post the pair were inspired to bury the hatchet and get back into the studio for the first time since 1995.

However, the recording project, tentatively titled Rebus, soon changed course after the collapse of the online crowdfunding platform PledgeMusic through which the duo sought to fund the album via fan donations. Liesegang once again parted ways but undeterred by this series of unfortunate events the Patrick continued to work on the album, now known as They’ve Got Us Where They Want Us, Right at Each Others Throats before changing his mind and renaming the album Murica in 2020 upon releasing the single ‘Thoughts and Prayers‘ before U-turning and swapping the name back to the former.

On May 5th 2023, after a sporadic spree of single releases Patrick finally announced that the album would now be called The Algorithm and is scheduled for release on 25th of August 2023.

You can pre-order The Algorithm via this link: https://orcd.co/filter-the-algorithm

Filter are also currently in the midst of a world tour, set to embark on the UK leg in early 2024.

Heres the UK dates:

12/3/2024 – Gorilla – Manchester

13/3/2024 – Classic Grand – Glasgow

15/3/2024 – 02 Academy Birmingham – Birmingham

16/3/2024 – 02 Academy Islington – London

You can purchase tickets here: https://officialfilter.com/tour/