Outright Stand Against Violence & Fascism With 'Holler' 7" Preview Tracks

Outright, still one of the best hardcore bands going in Australia. [PC: Elsa Cairns]

CW: topics of rape and sexual assault discussed.

On July 27th, Outright will be releasing their new 7", 'Holler'. Before then, however, the Melbourne hardcore champions have dropped two of this new effort's four tracks on their Bandcamp page early, a sneak-peak for what awaits us come next month's anticipated release. Just like 2014's brilliant 'Avalanche' LP did with pissed-off songs like the classic 'Troubled' or the poignant 'A City Silent', this new Outright seven-inch (now available for pre-order via Reason and Rage Records) sees the Aussie hardcore collective standing defiant in their beliefs.

First and foremost is the fast, aggressive and riff-heavy 'Defeat/Repeat'; a thrashy antifa-inspired track directed at the cyclic nature of history regarding movements, resistance, war and the complacency that gives rise to fascism; offering a battle cry for listeners to either "kneel or stand". It's the Outright we all love and know, just new and improved, all with bassist Brett Eitzen still lending his gruff backing growls to the brooding hardcore fray.

Alongside 'Defeat/Repeat', the title track sees the band standing up strong in solidarity with every victim, survivor, friend and advocate in the movement against men's violence, rape, sexism, and street harassment. A powerful and real track offered in memory of 22-year-old Melbourne comedian Eurydice Dixon who was horrifically raped and murdered in Princes Park earlier this month; a tragic death that's brought many together and sparked a larger conversation about sexual assault and violence towards women in Australia. (Quite frankly, I hope the piece of shit who snuffed out Dixon's life rots for the rest of his days).

With the Victorian governments "Respect Women" ads thankfully hitting harder and louder lately across national media, Outright are doing what they can by using their own music as a voice for those don't have one, for those who have been forever silenced. Literally speaking in terms of voice, the primal screams of Jelena Goluza are at their heaviest and most confronting during these two tracks than much of Outright's back catalogue; combining her raw tone and vocal delivery with the dark but topical lyrical content. 'Holler' especially so with the titular song's stark closing lyric about respect and unwanted attention with "There is no compliment to be found in my dehumanization".

A quick glance over the release's liner notes sees that it was recorded and mixed earlier in 2018 by Mike Deslandes (High Tension, Pagan, The Nation Blue) and then mastered by Audiosiege's Brad Boatright (Sectioned, Conjurer, Rolo Tomassi). If you know the solid work of those two guys, then their engineering roles on this release should tell you that this will be the tightest and most polished Outright have ever sounded. And that's exactly what you get with these fresh new pair of songs, sick riffs and all.

Much their previous releases, Outright don't hold back; neither in their music or in the lyrics of any given song. And this 'Holler' 7" is set to be no exception. Check out 'Defeat/Repeat' and 'Holler' below:

If you’ve experienced or if someone you know has experienced similar incidents spoken about in this article, you can contact 1800RESPECT here for further help.