Listen to Machine Head’s new “folk song” Bastards

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Machine Head release stream of their new song Bastards - taken from their upcoming album Catharsis

Machine Head
Machine Head

Machine Head have released a stream of their new track Bastards.

It’s been taken from the band’s upcoming album Catharsis, which is scheduled to arrive on January 26 via Nuclear Blast.

It was first unveiled in 2016, with frontman Robb Flynn uploading the lyrics which were inspired by Donald Trump’s election victory.

Flynn has described the track as a “folk song” and reports that it created some discussion within the band.

He tells the That’s Not Metal podcast (via Blabbermouth): “It’s definitely way outside of the Machine Head wheelhouse, and we knew that.

“There was a lot of internal debate in the band, like, ‘Can we say this?’ ‘Do we need to say this?’ ‘Can we do a song like this?’

“To me, it’s a folk song. It’s four chords that have been played a million times over the last hundred years – and I knew that writing it.

“I just wrote it and I picked it up and those were the notes that worked well under the vocals that I was singing. And that’s what worked.”

Last month, Machine Head released a video for the Catharsis title track and will head out on tour across North America later this month.

Find details below. Catharsis is now available for pre-order.

Machine Head Catharsis tracklist

  1. Volatile
  2. Catharsis
  3. Beyond The Pale
  4. California Bleeding
  5. Triple Beam
  6. Kaleidoscope
  7. Bastards
  8. Hope Begets Hope
  9. Screaming At The Sun
  10. Behind A Mask
  11. Heavy Lies The Crown
  12. Psychotic
  13. Grind You Down
  14. Razorblade Smile
  15. Eulogy

Machine Head 2018 tour dates

Jan 25: Mesa Nile Theater, AZ
Jan 27: Albuquerque Sunshine Theater, NM
Jan 29: San Antonio Aztec Theater, TX
Jan 30: Dallas Gas Monkey Live!, TX
Jan 31: Houston House Of Blues, TX
Feb 02: Birmingham Saturn, AL
Feb 03: Pensacola Vinyl Music Hall, FL
Feb 05: Orlando Plaza Live, FL
Feb 06: Atlanta Centerstage, GA
Feb 08: Philadelphia Theatre Of Living Arts, PA
Feb 09: New York PlayStation Theater, NY
Feb 10: Boston Paradise Rock Club, MA
Feb 11: Montreal Club Soda, QC
Feb 13: Toronto Danforth Music Hall, ON
Feb 14: Buffalo Town Ballroom, NY
Feb 15: Pittsburgh Stage AE, PA
Feb 16: Cleveland Agora Theatre, OH
Feb 17: Detroit Majestic, MI
Feb 20: Des Moines Woolys, IA
Feb 21: Madison Majestic, WI
Feb 22: Minneapolis First Avenue, MN
Feb 23: Chicago Concord Music Hall, IL
Feb 24: Sauget Pops, IL
Feb 27: Denver Summit Music Hall, CO
Mar 01: Las Vegas House Of Blues, NV
Mar 02: Los Angeles Fonda Theatre, CA
Mar 03: Oakland The Fox Theater, CA
Mar 05: Portland Roseland Theater, OR
Mar 06: Vancouver Commodore Ballroom, BC
Mar 07: Seattle Showbox Market, WA
Mar 22: Rouen Le 106, France
Mar 24: Paris Bataclan, France
Mar 26: La Rouchelle La Sirene, France
Mar 27: Cenon Rocjer De Palmer, France
Mar 29: Santiago De Compostela Sala Capital, Spain
Mar 30: Lisbon Coliseum, Portugal
Mar 31: Porto Coliseum, Portugal
Apr 02: Madrid Riviera, Spain
Apr 03: Seville Sala Custon, Spain
Apr 04: Malaga Sala Paris 15, Spain
Apr 06: Mislata Sala Republica, Spain
Apr 07: Barcelona Razzmatazz, Spain
Apr 08: Toulouse Bikini, France
Apr 09: Marseille Caberet Auletoire, France
Apr 12: Ciampino Orion, Italy
Apr 13: Trezzo Sull’adda Live Club, Italy
Apr 15: Lyon Tansbordeur, France
Apr 16: Lausanne Les Docks, Switzerland
Apr 17: Pratteln Z7, Switzerland
Apr 19: Vienna Gasometer, Austria
Apr 20: Budapest BNMC, Hungary
Apr 21: Munich TonHalle, Germany
Apr 22: Stuttgart Longhorn, Germany
Apr 24: Strasbourg Laiterie, France
Apr 25: Luxembourg City Den Atelier, Luxembourg
Apr 27: Munster Skaters Palace, Germany
Apr 28: Cologne Ewerk, Germany
Apr 29: Berlin Columbiahalle, germany
May 01: Copenhagen Vega, Denmark
May 02: Cothenburg Pustervik, Sweden
May 03: Oslo Rockefeller, Norway
May 05: Hamburg Grosse Freiheit, Germany
May 06: Groningen Oosterpoort, Netherlands
May 07: Tilburg )13, Netherlands
May 09: Hanover Capitol, Germany
May 10: Wiesbaden Schlachthof, Germany
May 11: Brussels AB, Belgium
May 13: Southampton Guildhall, UK
May 14: Cardiff University, UK
May 15: Bristol O2 Academy, UK
May 17: Birmingham O2 Academy, UK
May 18: London Roundhouse, UK
May 19: London Roundhouse, UK
May 21: Nottingham Rock City, UK
May 22: Newcastle O2 Academy, UK
May 23: Glasgow O2 Academy, UK
May 25: Manchester Academy, UK

In the studio with Machine Head

Scott Munro
Scott Munro
Louder e-commerce editor

Scott has spent 35 years in newspapers, magazines and online as an editor, production editor, sub-editor, designer, writer and reviewer. Scott joined our news desk in the summer of 2014 before moving into e-commerce in 2020. Scott keeps Louder’s buyer’s guides up to date, writes about the best deals for music fans, keeps on top of the latest tech releases and reviews headphones, speakers, earplugs and more for Louder. Over the last 10 years, Scott has written more than 11,000 articles across Louder, Classic Rock, Metal Hammer and Prog. He's previously written for publications including IGN, Sunday Mirror, Daily Record and The Herald, covering everything from daily news and weekly features, to tech reviews, video games, travel and whisky. Scott's favourite bands are Fields Of The Nephilim, The Cure, New Model Army, All About Eve, The Mission, Cocteau Twins, Drab Majesty, The Tragically Hip, Marillion and Rush.