Wolves At The Gate release their sixth full-length album Wasteland, today via Solid State Records. Wolves at The Gate are an ambitious post-hardcore band from Cedarville, Ohio and by far one of the most mind gushing brutal bands I have seen in a bit. They have come back with another powerful album Wasteland. The first single released, “Parasite,” is a short film video leveling up in multifaceted dimensions. The quintet—Steve Cobucci (clean vocals, guitar), Ben Summers (bass), Nick Detty (lead vocals, keys), Abishai Collingsworth (drums), and Joey Alarcon (lead guitar)—have far beyond written some of their best yet.
“As I was working on the album and especially the lyrics, I began to realize that the Wasteland was a metaphor for a frame of mind that I don’t want to live in, but a world I feel myself drawn back into over and over again,” Cobucci reveals.
The musicians carefully pieced together what would become Wasteland. Cobucci co-produced the 13-track body of work with Josh Gilbert of Spiritbox, while the band recorded in New Jersey, San Diego, and Los Angeles.
“INT[r]O” takes the listener to an echoing depth with so much emotion then screams right into “(The Wasteland} PAIN” searing sounds of guitars chugging, and breathtaking breakdowns.
” Parasite” leaves your heart racing The song’s guttural brutality explodes and shreds your soul. The short film will stop you in your tracks and open your eyes.
” Synthetic Sun” is riveting!
Blackout The Sun
Cover your Eyes So You Can’t See Us
Board It up! It’s Burning My Skin
Cause we are the Children Born In The Dead Of Night
“Wandering” sounds like a journey in itself through trials and tribulations. “LAW OF THE[Waste} Land has intense keys and guttural screams. “It’s both a recognition of reality and a bit of a lament for the world we live in,” he sighs. “It goes back to the concept of ‘eye for an eye.’ When you get to the end, it asks, ‘Why do we live like this?’” “Smoke [False Devils]” slices into this album with intense synthesizers and harsh driving screams. It reminds me of trying to escape a horrible place.
Your words cut me deeper. They’re sharper than Steel.
Clearly, this masterpiece song discusses that instead of denying our wrongs, we should “accept those weaknesses, faults, flaws, and failures.” Many need to take heed on this and try to allow this concept in their lives. Another favorite on this album,” Deathclock,” unleashes catchy prog with brutal and melodic lyrical content. The band say,” It describes the world inside of your head.”
“Throughout the whole album, we are exploring different concepts through the lens of a broader narrative and story,” says vocalist/guitarist Steve Cobucci. “With ‘Parasite,’ we wanted to write a song that explores the relationship between a parasite and its host. It’s such a powerful metaphor for the way that we all relate with our own weaknesses, tendencies, and sin.”
Cobucci also states, “There’s a sense in which we hate the way that we continue to go back down the same dark paths, but we only walk those paths because there is something we want and something that we are getting out of it. We can say that we hate it as much as we want, but there is something enticing about it. It is a song essentially about the insanity of sin. The very thing that we crave is the very thing that hates us and wants to kill us. Chasing after sin is a bottomless pit. Always promising but never satisfying.”
The whole album will be unforgettable for loyal fans, and new. Probably one of the best albums I have heard in 2025. Wasteland is absolutely stunning, inciteful and brilliantly created by artists that have honed in their craft. Please, in the name of the metal gods, come to Florida.
