Music Matters
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

At The Drive-In Just Released Its First Song In 16 Years

Cedric Bixler-Zavala of At the Drive-In performs in Byron Bay, Australia.
Mark Metcalfe
/
Getty Images
Cedric Bixler-Zavala of At the Drive-In performs in Byron Bay, Australia.

Here we are at the end of 2016, a year fraught with national strife and general WTF-ery. What better way to soundtrack the fraying of nerves of America than the first At The Drive-In song in 16 years?

Sonically, "Governed By Contagions" picks right up where 2000's Relationship Of Command left off, with a nervous and noisy shot of heavy post-hardcore. But like At The Drive-In's most memorable songs, there's a meat hook of a shout-along. "How many bites do you think it takes to get to the cyanide tooth?" rattles Cedric Bixler-Zavala. "Brace yourself, my darling / Brace yourself, my love."

"Governed By Contagions" is available as a free download from the band's site. The YouTube description promises an as-yet-untitled album is forthcoming.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Listen to the Viking's Choice playlist, subscribe to the newsletter.