Swaggering, super-diesel Sydney stompers Speed were one of the most exciting bands on the hardcore underground for years before they released their full-length debut Only One Mode last year, and that hasn't changed one bit. Next week, Speed will join fellow hardcore giants Turnstile on that band's massive North American tour. Speed and Jane Remover will open every show, with Blood Orange, Mannequin Pussy, and Amyl And The Sniffers joining in a rotating direct-support spot. I can't wait. It's going to be fucking massive. I hope Speed's Jem Siow plays flute during the Turnstile set. Around the time that tour finishes up, Speed will drop a brand-new EP on our fucking asses.
Speed recorded their upcoming three-song EP All My Angels with producer Elliott Gallar. Lead single and opening track "Peace" is exactly the kind of hi-fi hardcore that these guys do so well. Speed have never sounded like a basement band, even when playing DIY venues. Instead, "Peace" switches speeds and riffs all over the place while bringing blockbuster levels of crunch. Even just the transitions have a cinematic sense of force. Here's what Jem Siow says about the song's lyrics:
Three of our close friends passed away in 18 months. But amidst this devastation, I was overcome with a deep sense of clarity and peace. Because despite the abyss of questions of why and how, my clearest sense of calm lay in the certainty that the time we shared and invested in one another was underpinned by unfiltered honesty and unconditional love. Their lives were short, but I know our experiences together were lived with deep, meaningful intention, which has in turn empowered us with more meaning and purpose while we are still here. This sense of calm and focus exists like a sharpened, refined weapon at my disposal -- poised to attack life and its many hurdles with precision and intention. And it has only been refined through the process of loss.
Like so many Speed songs, "Peace" has an epic video that makes them look cool as hell. Below, check out that video, the All My Angels EP, and Speed's upcoming tour dates, including a record-release show with End It and MSPAINT at the Brooklyn roller rink Xanadu.
TRACKLIST:
01 "Ain't My Game"
02 "Peace"
03 "All My Angels"
TOUR DATES:
9/15 - Nashville, TN @ The Pinnacle ~
9/17 - Asheville, NC @ Asheville Yards Amphitheater ^
9/19 - Philadelphia, PA @ Skyline Stage at Mann ^
9/20 - Boston, MA @ The Stage at Suffolk Downs ^
9/21 - Buffalo, NY @ The Outer Harbor at Terminal B ^
9/23 - Columbus, OH @ KEMBA Live! #
9/24 - Richmond, VA @ Brown’s Island #
9/26 - Chicago, IL @ Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island ^
9/27 - Minneapolis, MN @ The Armory ^
9/28 - Des Moines, IA @ Lauridsen Amphitheater at Waterworks Park ^
9/30 - Denver, CO @ Project 70 Under the Bridge ^
10/02 - Sacramento, CA @ Aftershock
10/03 - Birmingham, AL @ Furnace Fest
10/04 - Los Angeles, CA @ Exposition Park +
10/05 - San Francisco, CA @ Bill Graham Civic Auditorium +
10/07 - Seattle, WA @ WaMu Theater +
10/08 - Portland, OR @ Edgefield Concerts on the Lawn +
10/10 - San Diego, CA @ Gallagher Square at Petco Park +
10/11 - Phoenix, AZ @ Mesa Amphitheater +
10/14 - Austin, TX @ Moody Amphitheater +
10/15 - Houston, TX @ White Oak Lawn +
10/16 - Fort Worth, TX @ Panther Island Pavilion +
10/19 - Orlando, FL @ Orlando Amphitheatre +
10/24 - Toronto, ON @ Town Of Hardcore @ Lithuanian House *
10/25 - Brooklyn, NY @ Xanadu $
10/27 - Toulouse, France @ Le Bikini %
10/28 - Paris, France @ L'Elysee Montmartre %
10/30 - Munich, Germany @ Backstage %
10/31 - Leipzig, Germany @ Felsenkeller %
11/01 - Berlin, Germany @ Huxleys %
11/02 - Hamburg, Germany @ Gruenspan %
11/04 - Tilburg, Netherlands @ 013 %
11/05 - Cologne, Germany @ Live Music Hall %
11/06 - Ghent, Belgium @ Vooruit %
11/08 - Manchester, UK @ Victoria Warehouse %
11/09 - London, UK @ Brixton Academy %
+ with Turnstile, Amyl & The Sniffers, & Jane Remover
^ with Turnstile, Mannequin Pussy, & Jane Remover
# with Turnstile, Blood Orange, & Jane Remover
~ with Turnstile & Jane Remover
$ with End It & MSPAINT
% with Malevolence, Dying Wish, & Psycho-Frame
The All My Angels EP is out 10/23 on Flatspot/Last Ride.
