Emma Ruth Rundle announces new album and releases single that merges her acoustic and heavy rock sides

Emma Ruth Rundle has a knack for creating heavy rock music that sounds like a simple and direct stream of emotion, whilst hiding musical depth in the noise. After several heavy rock albums, ‘Engine of Hell’ shifted Emma’s sound to an acoustic tone to hone her quiet rage. Now, her new single ‘Powerless’ seems to merge the two sides of Emma’s work together. The verses bring in cascades of acoustic guitar, piano, and bowed strings. They then give way to surges of power chords and electric guitar fuzz for the big choruses. There is an elegance to the band’s sound this time around, and even the raw guitars prioritise a glazed fuzz over brutal sludge. It’s still as devastating as ever, and Emma’s ability to write about complex emotions stands out in the bridge. The lyrics include:

“Let me lie here with this hammer in my hand
One for breaking one for building something better
Let me die here with a hammer in my hand
One for finding one for showing something better
Let me walk here with a lantern in my hand
One for finding one for showing something better”

Whilst the music is often dark, Rundle’s lyrics usually shine light on the bright side, or on hope itself. The tools for destruction can be used as the tools for rebirth and rebuilding, and that feels like the genesis of this track. Emma wrote in her newsletter that this was the last track written for the album, and was originally titled ‘Noam Chomsky Is Dead To Me’. When writing about the forthcoming album, ‘These Killing Times’, Emma teases that it will cover many genres. It’s a hopeful album to raise spirits in… well, these killing times.

‘Powerless’ is the first single from the forthcoming album and is out now. ‘These Killing Times’ is slated for release on 18th September and is available for pre-order now. For more information about all of her musical projects, visit Emma Ruth Rundle’s website.

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