Right, we need to talk about the introduction to ‘Blades Forged’, the new single from Perth noise-rock trio Injured Ninja, because it's completely bonkers.
It starts out surprisingly poppy, almost harmless, and for a few moments you could be forgiven for thinking you've clicked on the wrong band. Then the guitars come roaring in and all hell breaks loose. The whole thing descends into an absolutely glorious cacophony of distortion and noise before the vocals and main riff finally arrive. What an intro!
And when those vocals and riffs do kick in, they're ridiculously infectious. The track locks into this relentless, almost hypnotic groove, with hooks that seem determined to take up permanent residence in your head. Then an enormous bass comes thundering in for the choruses, giving everything a completely different sort of weight, before we're treated to another spectacular breakdown. Just in case the introduction hadn't quite finished you off...
I had the pleasure of mastering this one back in October, and I absolutely love it. There's something wonderfully contradictory about the whole thing. It's loud, chaotic, relentlessly energetic and seemingly determined to destroy your speakers, but underneath all that mayhem is an incredibly catchy song. It's the sort of track that makes you want to simultaneously bang your head and sing along, which is a combination I don't encounter nearly often enough.
Injured Ninja have quite a history behind them, too. From international tours to their enormous, percussion-heavy live interpretation of The Epic of Gilgamesh, they've spent nearly two decades making a tremendous amount of noise and doing some wonderfully strange things along the way.
‘Blades Forged’ is the first taste of their forthcoming album Nuclear Gandhi, their first full-length studio record in over a decade, which is expected in early 2027. It's a concept album presented as a transmission from the last radio station in a post-apocalyptic world, hosted by a thoroughly mutated announcer. So, fairly standard stuff really.
And if you're wondering where the lyrics for ‘Blades Forged’ came from, apparently the band started turning their cheeky replies to some of the more peculiar characters lurking in their social media messages into song lyrics. I can't think of a more fitting origin story for a track like this.
Incidentally, there's also a nice little connection to DETH, whose debut EP I mastered earlier this year, as two members of Injured Ninja also play in that band. Clearly there's something in the water over in Perth.
Now, if you happen to be in Perth tonight, Saturday 14 November, you're in luck, because Injured Ninja are celebrating the single's release with a live show at The Bird in Northbridge, supported by Spacerhead, Unicorn and Neapolaxi. Having heard what these guys are capable of on record, I can only imagine the sort of chaos they'll be unleashing on stage. I'd strongly recommend getting along!
‘Blades Forged’ is available now exclusively on Bandcamp, so go and give it a listen. It's an absolute belter of a track, and if this is the opening salvo from Nuclear Gandhi, I already know that album is going to be something special.
Bring it on!
