With Collider the German-Australian trio evade all the pitfalls of the sophomore slump. These ten songs carry an atmosphere of restrained anger and maturity, capturing a somber narrative that continues to resonate and leave the listener pondering. Collider listens like a trudge through inhospitable badlands with each song starting as if it was always there, and you just walk into the music at hearing distance.

Having members spread out over the globe, the band adjusted their writing and recording process to accommodate work schedules and extended family visits. On top of this, Collider features a whole string of guest musicians who infuse the record with extra fresh sounds. Kevin Whitley from legendary US noise rockers Cherubs joins the band on ‘Smile’, while Luc Hess (Kunz + Closet Disco Queen + ex-The Ocean) lends his incredible drumming to ‘Youth’ and ‘To Call and Let It Ring’. Emilie Zoë (solo + Autisti) and Fabian Bremer (Radare + graphic design) bring the haunting qualities of their musicianship to ‘Wolves at the Door’. All of this is held together by an impeccable mix and mastering of the one-and-only Magnus Lindberg (Cult of Luna).

This album proves HEADS to be masters at bending noise into narrative and heavy riffing into images of vast wastelands. Collider is art rock meeting sludge in a carefully arranged interplay of grave digging and marble sculpting. A bleak redefinition of heartland rock that’s situated on the verge of the savage and the sophisticated. (Robert Westerveld / Arctic Drones