Hacktivist | |
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 Ben Marvin and J Hurley at With Full Force 2013 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 2011–present |
| Labels | |
| Members |
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| Past members |
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| Website | hacktivist |
Hacktivist is a British rap metal band formed in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England in 2011. They released a self-titled EP in 2012 followed by their debut studio album, Outside the Box, in 2016. The band's second studio album, Hyperdialect, was released in 2021.
Hacktivist began in 2011 when former guitarist Timfy James left his previous band Heart of a Coward. James claims that the formation of Hacktivist was a "fluke", with no intention of developing such a style, but the group was born when peer J Hurley, a local rapper with little history in the metal scene, began recording vocals over some of James' demos. [1] After the demos became very popular online, James decided to recruit a full lineup, bringing in Richard Hawking on drums, Josh Gurner (ex-Sacred Mother Tongue) on bass and Ben Marvin (James's former bandmate in Heart of a Coward) as a second vocalist. In 2012, the band put out a self-titled EP resulting in debut single "Unlike Us" reaching No. 2 on the Amazon UK metal chart within 48 hours. [2] Despite being released independently on 12 November 2012, the band's self-titled EP proved popular in the metal media with Metal Hammer in particular giving the band significant coverage [3] and considerable airplay on BBC Radio 1.
After the release of the Hacktivist EP, the band set out to tour. This included supporting slots for acts such as Enter Shikari and Korn and performances in European festivals such as Sonisphere Festival, Download Festival and Rock am Ring and Rock im Park in summer 2013. In April 2013 the group released a new song "Elevate", with an accompanying video, for free download [4] and was followed up in August with a cover of "Niggas In Paris" (originally by Jay-Z and Kanye West). A video for their cover of "Niggas In Paris" was filmed during their set at Download Festival 2013. They also performed a live session for BBC Radio 1 at Maida Vale Studios.
The band headed out on a UK headline tour throughout winter 2013, supported by The Algorithm. A re-release of their debut EP with four bonus tracks was released on 11 November 2013.
The band has shown support for hacktivism collective Anonymous, and appear to support "whistle-blowers" Edward Snowden and Chelsea Manning whom they reference in the song 'Cold Shoulders'.
On 4 August 2014, Hacktivist released the single and video for "False Idols". Many references to activism (especially hacktivist collective Anonymous) are made throughout the video and within hours the song had reached number 1 on the iTunes Metal chart. This release was followed on 12 November by "Deceive and Defy" (also accompanied by a video), featuring Charlie Holmes of Heart in Hand on vocals. Hacktivist then toured the UK from November to December, supported by Dead Harts and the One Hundred.
Following the release of the single "Buszy" on 17 January 2016, their debut studio album Outside the Box was released on 4 March 2016. [5]
On the 20 January 2017, it was announced that Hacktivist and Ben Marvin were parting ways due to Ben's family commitments, [6] and rapper/vocalist Jot Maxi was brought in as the new co-vocalist. In May, the band released '2 Rotten', a heavier remix of 'Rotten' from Outside the Box, with Jot Maxi taking more of a leading role than he had in the original.
On the 28th of March 2018, it was announced that Hacktivist and Timfy James had parted ways. Following on from this, the band recruited James Hewitt (of bands 'Invocation' and 'Exist Immortal') as their new guitarist and producer with an official announcement made on the 19 January 2019. Hewitt had been playing live and writing new material with the band since June 2018. [7] As a result, Josh Gurner would provide clean vocals following Timfy James' departure.
The band embarked on a headline UK tour in Jan/Feb 2019 and went on to release the single 'Reprogram' with accompanying video on the 10th of April 2019. In 2021, the band released a song titled "Planet Zero" with an accompanying music video from their upcoming album Hyperdialect.
On June 27, 2023, the band announced that co-lead vocalist Jot Maxi would be stepping down from his role in the band. [8] Two days later on June 29, the band announced that former Borders vocalist Jordan 'JJ' Olifent would be joining the band as the new co-lead vocalist, alongside a new single titled 'Rep the H'. [9] The band debuted Olifent live later that day at the final edition of UK Tech-Fest at the Newark Showground. [10]
Hacktivist's music is a blend of several different styles. They are noted for using eight-string guitars and six-string basses both tuned down to Drop E to achieve an extremely low tuned, distorted and dark sound, as well as ambient passages and a "wall of sound" production style. Their vocals are primarily rapped, although they also make use of conventional singing and occasional harsh vocals. They write their lyrics collectively, focusing on political subjects such as anarchism, conspiracy theories, government corruption, censorship, anti-gun violence, unity against oppression and other social and economic issues.
The band's music has been described as rap metal [11] [12] and grime, [12] as fusing djent and nu metal, [11] [13] or more generally as adding rapping to djent. [13] [14] They have also been said to use elements of groove metal. [13] Their guitar compositions have been described as reminiscent of both Meshuggah and nu metal bands such as Limp Bizkit and Korn. [14]
Equilibrium is a German folk metal band from Bavaria. The band's music combines elements of folk music, pagan metal, melodic black metal and symphonic metal, though they recently added in more modern influences including metalcore and industrial metal. Their riffs reflect traditional Germanic melodies. Their lyrical themes focus on Germanic tales and Germanic mythology. The songs of the band used to be mostly in German, although most recently they prioritized English in their songs, especially starting with their sixth album Renegades (2019).
Deadlock is a German heavy metal band from Schwarzenfeld, Bavaria. In 2010 they supported Lacuna Coil on tour. The band consists of only founding member Sebastian Reichl (guitar) alongside John Gahlert (vocals), Margie Gerlitz (vocals), Ferdinand Rewicki (guitar), Christian Simmerl (bass) and Werner Riedl (drums).
Dead by April is a Swedish metalcore band from Gothenburg, formed in 2007 by Pontus Hjelm and Jimmie Strimell. The current band lineup consists of Pontus Hjelm, Christopher Kristensen, Marcus Wesslén and Marcus Rosell (drums). Despite many line up changes throughout their career, both Marcus Wesslén and Pontus Hjelm have remained consistent since their debut album.
You and What Army were an English four-piece electronic rock band formed in 2007, originating from Telford. It consisted of David Brown, Kieran Charles Smith, Jamie Hancox and Zak Hammond from 2008, and previously with Joseph Allen (guitar), Darren Smith (bass), and Thomas Bridgwater (drums). Although they are predominantly a rock band, they combine several different musical styles into their sound and are mainly influenced by heavy metal and electronic music.
Djent is a subgenre of progressive metal characterized by its use of complex and heavily syncopated rhythm patterns. Its distinctive sound is that of high-gain, distorted, palm-muted, down-tuned strings. The name "djent" is an onomatopoeia of this sound.
"Niggas in Paris" is a song by American rappers Jay-Z and Kanye West from their collaborative album Watch the Throne (2011). The song is built around a synth bell loop from the Dirty South Bangaz music library, and contains vocal samples from "Baptizing Scene" by Reverend W.A. Donaldson, an interpolation of "Victory" by Puff Daddy featuring The Notorious B.I.G. and Busta Rhymes, and dialogue excerpts from the 2007 film Blades of Glory. On the week of the album's release, "Niggas in Paris" debuted at number 75 on the Billboard Hot 100, eventually peaking at number five. Outside of the United States, "Niggas in Paris" peaked within the top ten of the charts in the United Kingdom. As of 2018, it has sold 6.7 million archetype digital units in the United States. The song won Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song at the 55th Annual Grammy Awards.
Uneven Structure is a progressive metal band based in Metz, France. They play a style of post-metal which is heavily influenced by the Swedish extreme metal band Meshuggah. The band blends polyrhythmic passages and extremely low tunings with a heavily layered production style and ambient soundscapes. They are often categorized in the djent movement due to the Meshuggah-like guitar tone they often employ. The band was formed after the split of Longchat, a band which featured Igor Omodei and Benoit Friedrich.
Northlane are an Australian heavy metal band from Sydney, formed in 2009. The band comprises guitarists Jon Deiley and Josh Smith, drummer Nic Pettersen and vocalist Marcus Bridge. Northlane have released six studio albums: Discoveries ; Singularity, which reached No. 3 on the ARIA Albums Chart; Node, a number-one album; Mesmer, Alien and Obsidian. At the ARIA Music Awards of 2015 the group won the Best Hard Rock or Heavy Metal Album category for their album Node. At the ARIA Music Awards of 2017, the band won again with Mesmer. The band won the Best Hard Rock or Heavy Metal Album category for the third time at the ARIA Music Awards of 2019 for their 2019 album Alien.
The Algorithm is the musical project of French musician Rémi Gallego from Perpignan. His style is characterised by an unusual combination of electronic music with progressive metal. Gallego chose the name The Algorithm to highlight the music's complex and electronic nature.
Hacktivist is the first extended play album by the British rap metal band Hacktivist. It was released independently on 12 November 2012. Music videos for the songs "Cold Shoulders", "Unlike Us" and "Hacktivist" were released in support of the album.
In Hearts Wake are an Australian metalcore band from Byron Bay, formed in 2006. The band comprises vocalist Jake Taylor, guitarists Eaven Dall and Ben Nairne, bassist Kyle Erich, and drummer Conor Ward. They have released five studio albums: Divination, Earthwalker, Skydancer, Ark and Kaliyuga, which was released on 7 August 2020. The band's lyrical themes include environmentalism, environmental justice, global warming, conservation, and other social issues.
Volumes is an American progressive metalcore band formed in Los Angeles, California in 2009. The group currently consists of bassist Raad Soudani, vocalists Michael Barr and Myke Terry, and drummer Nick Ursich. Throughout the band's history, bassist Raad Soudani has remained the only constant member. They are currently signed to Fearless Records and have released four studio albums: Via (2011), No Sleep (2014), Different Animals (2017) and Happier? (2021). They have also released three EPs: The Concept of Dreaming (2010), Coming Clean (2019) and Bend(ed) (2022).
Outside the Box is the debut studio album by British rap metal band Hacktivist. It was released on 4 March 2016 through UNFD and Rise Records.
The One Hundred is an English crossover band from London, combining elements of metalcore, punk, grime, rap and electronics. The band released their debut EP Subculture in 2014 via Australian independent label UNFD and have toured extensively across the United Kingdom and Europe as well as performing at major festivals such as Sonisphere, Download Festival and Reading and Leeds. In September 2016 the band announced via their social media that they had signed to Spinefarm Records, a division of Universal Music Group.
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Infant Annihilator are an English deathcore band formed in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire in 2012 by drummer Aaron Kitcher and guitarist Eddie Pickard. The band are known for their technical, eclectic and extreme musical style; parodistic and satirically graphic lyrical content and shock humour; and music videos that feature ribald themes.
Void Of Vision are an Australian metalcore band from Melbourne, formed in 2013. The band consists of vocalist Jack Bergin, guitarists James McKendrick and Mitch Fairlie and drummer George Pfaendner. Void of Vision have released three studio albums: Children of Chrome (2016), Hyperdaze (2019) and Chronicles (2023).
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Hyperdaze is the second studio album by Australian metalcore band Void of Vision. It was released on 13 September 2019 by UNFD. It was produced by Northlane guitarist Jon Deiley and Lance Prenc, and recorded at Prenc's home studio in Kinglake.
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