SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: CANCER BATS – GIVE ME DIRT

CANCER BATS
GIVE ME DIRT
BAT SKULL RECORDS/NEW DAMAGE RECORDS

Riding high off the 20-year anniversary of their debut album, Birthing The Giant, which was celebrated with a triumphant cross-Canada tour, Cancer Bats have returned with Give Me Dirt, their first album since 2022’s Psychic Jailbreak. For their eighth studio album – and the recorded debut of guitarist Jackson Landry – the band worked with producer Kurt Ballou (Converge, Kvelertak, High On Fire, Every Time I Die), bringing along a cast of featured artists, including Nate Newton (Converge), Chris Cresswell (The Flatliners), Brooklyn Doran, and Efrem Schulz (Death By Stereo), to deliver their most thrilling record in years.

Give Me Dirt opens with the dissonant and brutal riff of “World Wide Fire Death Race,” featuring Newton on guitar. Liam Cormier’s signature, throaty voice emerges as he leads the band through the track as the song opens up into an anthemic chorus, denoting a greater level of production and songwriting as the band hold onto their hardcore credibility with a grimy track. The lead single, “Stay Stuck,”, follows with a relentless and sludgy pulse. Cormier’s use of a megaphone adds a dynamic element to the song as, once again, the band digs into a catchy chorus. Despite an element of polish in the songwriting, there is no denying the raw punk sensibilities behind Cancer Bats.

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Give Me Dirt is a relentless record. Without a moment of reprieve, Cancer Bats prove to be unstoppable. Furthermore, the inclusion of Cresswell, Newton, and Schulz add a new layer to the band, but it is Doran’s contributions on “Long Tooth” that stand out most. Her atmospheric backing vocals serve as a haunting foil to Cormier’s screams, elevating the song’s bridge. Despite this, there is not a lesser moment on Give Me Dirt. Highlights include the abrasive title track, the Cresswell feature on “Bright Eyes Of Gold,” and the midtempo “Ocean Crash.”

Across the 11 tracks that comprise Give Me Dirt, Cancer Bats sound both incredible powerful and totally revitalized. There is a freshness to their latest album that feels like a newly ignited spark as Cormier officially welcomes Landry into the fold and embraces a rich collaborative edge that harkens back to the band’s roots and further benefits the record. As a result, Give Me Dirt sees Cancer Bats return as a leading force in modern punk and hardcore with a record that can stand strongly beside some of their most classic of material.

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