Music Reviews • May 16, 2023

HEALTH

HATEFUL

LOMA VISTA RECORDINGS

HEALTH. The band stylizes it in all caps, and I insist.

I discovered HEALTH in 2015 with a “blind” vinyl purchase of their third release, DEATH MAGNETIC, in the same way I discovered Slowdive, Sugar, and My Bloody Valentine decades before: the album art. I hadn’t heard anything by HEALTH, even though they had been releasing music since 2007, but they instantly became a band I bought every pre-release from and everything available on vinyl.

I finally saw them live in 2022 with Perturbator in a rather small venue, and it was a pivotal concert experience. They are LOUD. The light show is INTENSE. Jake Duzsik’s vocals are ethereal, his distorted guitar slashing and percussive, and he is seemingly diminutive when standing next to bassist John Famiglietti and drummer Benjamin Jared Miller, both massive humans that absolutely crush the rhythm section. It’s a spectacle.

HEALTH’s sound has evolved through their career. They began in L.A. as a noise and experimental rock band. They have written soundtracks for Rockstar Games, had singles included in film soundtracks, and they have a penchant for remixes and collaborations. Culminating in 2020’s DISCO4 :: PART I and 2021’s DISCO4 :: PART II, where they worked with numerous artists from diverse genres — Nine Inch Nails, Lamb of God, 100 Gecs, Soccer Mommy, JPEGMafia, Poppy, etc. — HEALTH’s sound began to become heavier, aggressively so. With the band’s newest single, “HATEFUL,” they stay true to these roots and pivot even further towards industrial metal.

The single is co-written by SIERRA, features backing vocals from Street Sects’ Leo Ashline, and appeared in-game via ULTRAKILL’s latest software update. Appropriately, the band’s message is “BACK TO THE CYBER GRIND” and captures the track’s industrial ferocity. Both busy and lockstep with momentum that reminds me of “BODY/PRISON” with Perturbator from DISCO4 :: PART I and its 8-bit video.

This all seems negative and morbid, but HEALTH have been very intentional with their messaging, including “YOU WILL LOVE EACH OTHER” and “DON’T KILL YOURSELF” on album sleeves and band merch. Their new slogan is “SAD MUSIC FOR HORNY PEOPLE”. I want that t-shirt. You should listen to “HATEFUL” (and everything else that HEALTH have released).