Hopesfall Are Back: New LP 'Arbiter' Drops This July

15 April 2018 | 6:42 am | Alex Sievers
Originally Appeared In

New Hopesfall, who dis?

New Hopesfall, who dis? 



In 2018, Underoath are back, Glassjaw have returned, At The Drive In aren't dead, American Nightmare dropped a new recordRefused are active once more, Taken have a new EP dropping this monthQuicksand are back in action, and even Bleeding Through are coming back from the grave this year. As so much of the past returns to life, yet another favourite alternative/post-hardcore noughties act recently announced their return with their first new song in over a decade: Hopesfall. But we ain't complaining in the slightest.

Don't miss a beat with our FREE daily newsletter

The influential underground American group split back in 2008 but kept on writing music together (just without an outlet for it) ever since, properly reuniting in 2016 by signing up with Equal Vision Records - a perfect home for the band following their various Trustkill Records issues - and re-issued their first three albums on vinyl. So while they've technically been an active band for a couple years now, fans have gone into full fucking overdrive lately with this week's release of 'H.A. Wallace Space Academy', the band's first new material since 2007's 'Magnetic North'.

This is the kind of news that every scene/hardcore kid who jammed out the 2000's staple 'The Satelittle Years' till the bloody CD wore out has been waiting for over 11 years. And it was well worth the wait, picking up right where the band left off over a decade ago.

[caption id="attachment_1101955" align="aligncenter" width="760"] Hopesfall, 2018.[/caption]

The sublime 'H.A. Wallace Space Academy' grips you hard with big riffs, strong layers, dark melodies, and doesn't let go until the very end. The quintet's gargantuan and "lost-in-space" style is just as good as it ever was back in the day; sifting through all manner of melodic highs and heavier, hardcore-orientated lows to create a dense and dynamic sound that perfectly accompanies clip's the haunting black and white visuals of modern technological advancements, for better and for worse. Also, that pre-chorus section of "In a ditch with a shovel/In a bombed out space where the roads need fuel to survive/If the fog caves in/We're discovered" might just be the catchiest piece of music that I've heard all damn year!

Recorded at VuDu Studios with producer Mike Watts (Glassjaw, The Dear Hunter), Hopesfall's comeback effort and fourth album overall, 'Arbiter' will touch down on July 13th via Graphic Nature Records/Equal Vision Records. Speaking to the folks over at Loudwire regarding this song's premiere, guitarist Josh Brigham assured everyone that the group were back together on their own terms now, saying that, “We’re gonna write what we want, and what feels natural. This is the cherry on top; this is a gift.” And that makes me very happy to see what follows.

With a current lineup of vocalist Jay Forrest, guitarists Brigham and Dustin Nadler, bassist Chad Waldrup and drummer Adam Morgan, this 2018 iteration of Hopesfall is looking to be as good as ever.

Enjoy 'H.A. Wallace Space Academy' below:



'Arbiter' tracklisting:

1. Faint Object Camera

2. H.A. Wallace Space Academy

3. Bradley Fighting Vehicle

4. C.S. Lucky-One

5. Catapult

6. Tunguska

7. Aphelion

8. Drowning Potential

9. To Bloom

10. Indignation and the Rise of the Arbiter