EP Stream: Celebrating the End of a Dead Year with WarCall’s Dead End Pt. 1

Now that there’s a pinprick of light at the end of this global health crisis tunnel of nonsense, metal fans should prepare themselves for both a glut of releases that were written and recorded during the past year of downtime away from shows and touring – in addition to the already existing glut of releases that couldn’t be pushed back and delayed any further – and an accompanying glut of stories about how these releases came to be via a hodgepodge of remote writing sessions, home studio construction, crippling boredom and depression caused by inertia. Enter Montreal thrash quartet WarCall who took the block of forced downtime, one in which they’d normally be chasing down indie promoters throughout North America and Europe in self-booking their own tours, and the dystopian feel of the past year to create a two-part EP release, the first part of which we’re unsurprisingly premiering via streaming below.

Available as of tomorrow on the band’s own Plan B imprint, Dead End Pt. 1 is what it’s called and here’s the band’s description of the EP, its coming counterpart and the intent and process behind them both:

“We originally wrote nine songs for an album over the course of 2019. We wanted to focus on what we had and what we wrote for that album, so we didn’t leave anything on the shelf.  Instead, we pushed hard on each song to bring the ideas and concepts the furthest we could. The recording process was done over the course of 2020 and there is still some work to be done on five of the songs. But, the first four songs were ready, so instead of waiting to finish mixing the whole album, we decided to split the release into two EPs. Dead End Pt. 1 is a four song EP of in your face, old-school inspired metal, while Dead End Pt. 2 will be more progressive and atmospheric and we are still working on sounds and moods to elevate the songs.  For now, these two EPs will be released only in digital format. At our release party/come-back show, sometime in 2021 – we hope! – we will release a physical LP with the nine tracks from the two EPs in a different flow and mood, with tons of extra stuff so fans will be able to enjoy the exclusivity of the CD or vinyl records we will release.

“The two EPs are a collection of nine songs and nine stories about struggle. Recorded and mixed in a post-apocalyptic setting, we have let the events of 2020 influence the process and the mood of them, while still aiming for a timeless production that will age well with time. The title and artwork represents the doom and gloom of life in the year 2020 and how the human race reacts in the face of death and uncertainty.  With the impossibility to meet to even take a band picture, WarCall present themselves as fictional post-apocalyptic warriors, a subtle comment and nod to the current events that marked the year 2020.

“We are really proud to be sharing Dead End Pt. 1 today, even more so to have Decibel as a partner for this premiere. This is the result of 24 months of our best work yet. Stay tuned, this is only the beginning: the next five tracks are coming in a few months…Thrash on!”

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Plan B Music