Boston hardcore act Defeater are currently celebrating the release of their fourth studio album titled Abandoned (out now via Epitaph). Those familiar with the band know that they are songwriting masters, and Abandoned is no exception.
The album follows the story of a never-named New Jersey family whose already troubled lives disintegrate into torment, rendered all the more tragic for the depth and detail of singer Derek Archambault’s lyrics. Abandoned—recorded earlier this year at guitarist Jay Maas’ studio, with drummer Joe Longobardi, bassist Mike Poulin and guitarist Jake Woodruff—is the most relentlessly raw and uncompromising chapter so far, powered by a renewed sense of artistic ambition and a plot twist no one could have expected.
Abandoned was written and recorded in a welcome period of relief in Archambault’s life, after he’d finally received a life-changing surgery that repaired severe hip damage he suffered in an injury. Archambault’s surgery, he says, allowed him to redouble his connection with his own writing, leaving him clear to truly inhabit what he calls his own Glass family—after the famous J.D. Salinger characters. To celebrate the release of this incredible new LP, the band have put together a mixtape featuring their favourite Aussie bands performing their favourite Aussie songs, if they love us this much, hopefully they’ll come for a tour soon!
Tracklist
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – ‘People Ain’t No Good’
Break Even – ‘Heart Shaped House’
Miles Away – ‘Rain Eyes’
Smith Street Band – ‘Surrey Dive’
Deez Nuts – ‘What I Gotta Do’
The Others – ‘Quicksand’
Eddy Current Suppression Ring – ‘Colour Television’
Cut Copy – ‘Hearts On Fire’
Abandoned is out now via Epitaph.
