Australian metalcore quartet RELIQA have today announced their second album High Risk Thoughts, which lands 12th February via Nuclear Blast.
Pre-order High Risk Thoughts: https://reliqa.bfan.link/high-risk-thoughts
To commemorate the moment, the quartet have also revealed the record’s opening track, the titanic ‘Serum’.
Stream ‘Serum’: https://reliqa.bfan.link/serum
The band comment: “‘Serum’’s sound represents a sort of bridge from where we were to where we are now, so it felt apt to have it not only open the new record but also mark its announcement to the world. It’s low and menacing with a mechanical edge (heavily inspired by the Danish prog legends VOLA), but we’ve also loaded it with some fun twists and turns, all part of our long-held goal to condition our listeners to expect the unexpected and be open-minded. This is the only song on the record that we’ve been consistently playing live for some time now and the reception has been full of energy, giving us high hopes for the rest of the album’s verdict.”
RELIQA‘s debut full-length, Secrets of the Future (2024) was a wonderfully compelling and thoughtful look at what may be possible for the Sydney modern metalcore upstarts. Since then, so much of what they hoped would take place, has.
Racking up over four million streams on Secrets of the Future alone, cementing themselves as a mainstay in the Australian heavy scene, touring nationally with Northlane, Periphery, performing at Good Things and Life’s A Beach festivals, and, most importantly, finding their feet as a headlining band, the quartet reached a level that had been the aim ever since they were kids.
Now, the band stand on the edge of a precipice, ready to release their incredible second album High Risk Thoughts. An album that is not just a cementing of so many of the factors that have allowed RELIQA to get to this point, but a mature extension and thrilling expansion of who and what they want to be as they move forward.
Musically, it looks to the greats of the modern genre. Shimmering with the ethereal tranquillity and gorgeous melodic control of Spiritbox at their most open; flickering with the pulsating synths and heightened tension underpinning Northlane; engaging with the forward-moving embracing of change of Bring Me The Horizon – High Risk Thoughts is an album that reaches for the stars.
Lyrically, it builds on the idea that we should give ourselves more grace in the life we are living. A sense of love, understanding and patience embedded into every crystalline refrain and soaring chorus. A reminder that by even considering how to make even more of a splash than you already have, you have already won, and that should be noted and celebrated, no matter where it lands you.
Together, it creates a record as inspiring as it is intense, as spine-tingling as it is sincere, as boundless as it is bludgeoning. A significant factor in keeping everything in check is that the band continues to keep things close to home and DIY at heart.
1. Serum
2. Hands to the Ceiling
3. High Risk Thoughts
4. Quiet Coda
5. Your Touch
6. Cemetery Roots
7. One Word
8. Unguarded
9. Digital Heaven
10. Nobody Survives This
RELIQA will be touring North America for the very first time, in support of Northlane (dates listed below). As they transform from Australia’s best-kept secret to one of their most exhilarating, exuberant and electric exports, RELIQA are fast becoming the figurehead to show what doing things your own way can achieve.
RELIQA live:
02/12 Sacramento, CA – Ace of Spades
02/13 Anaheim, CA – House of Blues
02/14 Mesa, AZ – Nile Theater
02/16 Dallas, TX – South Side Music Hall
02/17 San Antonio, TX – Vibes Event Center
02/18 Houston, TX – White Oak Music Hall
02/20 Orlando, FL – House of Blues
02/21 Atlanta, GA – The Masquerade (Heaven)
02/23 Charlotte, NC – The Underground
02/24 Baltimore, MD – Baltimore Soundstage
02/26 Philadelphia, PA – Brooklyn Bowl
02/27 New York, NY – Irving Plaza
02/28 Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club
03/2 Montreal, QC – Beanfield Theatre
03/3 Toronto, ON – Danforth Music Hall
03/5 Detroit, MI – St Andrews Hall
03/6 Chicago, IL – House of Blues
03/7 Minneapolis, MN – Varsity Theater
03/8 Denver, CO – Summit Music Hall
03/10 Salt Lake City, UT – The Grand @ The Complex
03/13 Calgary, AB – The Palace Theatre
03/14 Edmonton, AB – Midway
03/15 Vancouver, BC – Commodore Ballroom
03/17 Seattle, WA – Neptune
03/18 Portland, OR – Roseland Theater
