Defects reveal their brand-new single ‘Artificial Icons,’ which boils over with rage on a world run by control and lies, and announce changes within the band. Check out the video for ‘Artificial Icons.’ Following on from themes touched upon on their debut album, ‘Artificial Icons’ tackles wider socio-political issues. It’s about zooming out on the world, noticing manipulation, and refusing to stand by. It’s a volatile mix of crushing riffs, thunderous breakdowns, and soaring choruses, surging between savage screams and anthemic vocals, pushing and pulling between chaos and clarity. The lyrics scream, “Oppress and pretend that this is all to protect, build back better, what the fuck do you mean, you wanna start a revolution that we don’t even see.”
The song holds particular clarity in the world’s political climate of 2026. “Look around. I wanted to write a song that pushes you to think outside the box. I was faced with religious teachings when I was younger. I felt fear, I felt rage, and I wanted to fight back. Believe in what you choose, not in what others force on you for their own agendas, profit or control,” says singer Tony Maue.
‘Artificial Icons’ follows their previous new single, Heresy – a brutal confrontation with blind faith and false hope. This is their first new music since the release of 2024’s Modern Error. When their debut album was released, it connected with metal fans around the globe. Momentum surged as they hit the road hard, sweeping across Europe with Trivium, Northlane, Of Mice and Men, Orbit Culture, and Funeral for a Friend. Their festival checklist was a monster exercise: Download (UK), Slam Dunk (UK), Mystic Festival (Poland), Rock Im Park/Rock Am Ring (Germany), Impericon Festival (Germany), Rockharz (Germany), Summer Breeze Open Air (Germany), Rock for the People (Czech Republic), Jera On Air (The Netherlands), Graspop (Belgium), and Parkpop (Belgium). In late summer 2025, they reached a fork in the road. Harry Jennings (Drums), Luke Genders (Guitar), and David Silver (Bass) chose to step back and focus on new life chapters. Together with Maue, they co-wrote new music as a parting gift and legacy, leaving their mark as they departed. Maue and guitarist James Threadwell continues the band. “It was incredibly tough. They’re my friends. I love those guys to pieces. When we wrote together, there was a real bond,” Maue says, before adding, “There were moments when I didn’t know how to piece this together to walk forward.”
While this moment is bittersweet, they’re stepping into a new era with a new lineup: Tony Maue (Vocals), James Threadwell (Guitar), Taylor Brown (Guitar), and Rowan Jack (Drums), bringing a renewed focus and the same fire that has always driven them forward. ‘Artificial Icons’ will continue to light the path. “I can’t give up. I’ve given up before. I know what that looks like, and I’m not doing that again,” Maue affirms.
Fast-rising metallers Defects today drop their brand-new track, Heresy – an unrelenting exorcism of the soul, which rages at false promises. Watch the video for the song HERE.
The band has spent the start of the summer tearing across the European festival circuit. Debuting the song at Slam Dunk (UK) to a phenomenal response before releasing it on Mystic Festival (Poland), Rock Im Park/Rock Am Ring (Germany), Rock for the People (Czech Republic) and Krakow (Poland) in support of the mighty Northlane. “It has been incredible. It’s brought a new level of energy to our live sets and really gets the crowd jumping. It feels more polished, more evolved than anything from the first album.,” says singer Tony Maue.
Heresy is the first track since last year’s breakthrough debut, the incredibly personal Modern Error. 2024 saw them take the stage at Download (UK) and Graspop (Belgium), as well as perform alongside Of Mice and Men, Orbit Culture, and Funeral for a Friend, in addition as already having shared the stage with Bullet for My Valentine and In Flames.
Hypnotic riffs whirl into action before they throw out the opening gambit, “Let’s go!” and Maue launches into the guttural growl. “So keep on telling yourself that everyone will be saved.” Riffs from hell combined with apocalyptic drums, which continue their incendiary, hardcore-meets-melodic, mountain-shaking sound.
Talking about the new song, Maue goes on to say, “Heresy is a brutal confrontation with blind faith and false hope—a soaring anthem for anyone fed up with being lied to. It doesn’t hold back, warning of the silence that follows empty promises and the chaos that comes from unquestioned belief. Every lyric is a cry for accountability and justice.”
The band are never afraid to delve into the most personal depths of their emotions. Talking about the band’s evolution, Maue adds, “Following on from Modern Error, our sound has taken a big leap forward. We didn’t cut any corners—every detail was considered. We set out to do something new while staying true to the core of what makes this band special and why people connected with us in the first place. Writing this time was a challenge. We pushed ourselves to go places we hadn’t before, rewriting countless demos until we had something that felt like the best version of ourselves. I think people will feel that.”
Defects are set to spend the rest of the summer lighting up the festival stages across Europe; Jera On Air (The Netherlands), Impericon Festival (Germany), Rockharz (Germany), Summer Breeze Open Air (Germany), Parkpop (Belgium) and supporting metalcore titans Trivium for three shows across Germany, Belgium and The Netherlands. Sharing the stage with Trivium will be a particularly poignant moment as the singer smiles, “This is a real full-circle moment for all of us. We grew up listening to them and took a lot of influence from their music. This is what we live for—moments like this.”
“The response to Modern Error was unreal,” Maue reflects. We were writing those songs during lockdown, mostly for ourselves. So to see people get tattoos, scream the words back at us, and say the music helped them through hard times… that’s something we’ll never get over. We love our fans deeply and appreciate every bit of support. That connection fuels us. We want to show them why they should stick around for this next chapter. The new material has pushed us creatively and emotionally—it’s bigger, smarter, and more intense. Still raw and emotional, like the first record, but with more depth and intention. All killer, no filler.”
As Defects enter a new chapter, the deep personal connection with fans has grown. Comfortable in their own skin, they remain committed to the messages they convey, and now the music has taken a leap forward, with its sights firmly set on the biggest stages.
Tour Dates
25 Jun – Resurrection Fest, Viveiro, Spain 27 Jun – Jera On Air, Ysselsteyn, The Netherlands 28 Jun – Impericon Festival, Leipzig, Germany 4 Jul – Rockharz, Germany 10 Aug – Batschkapp. Frankfurt, Germany – w/ Trivium 11 Aug – OM. Liege, Belgium – w/ Trivium 12 Aug – Tivoli Ronda. Utrecht, Netherlands – w/ Trivium 13 Aug – Summer Breeze Open Air, Dinkelbühl, Germany 23 Aug – Parkpop, Oostkamp, Belgium
Rising UK metallers Defects have revealed the official video for “Echo Chamber” to coincide with the release of their debut album ‘Modern Error,’ out today on Mascot Records. You can watch the video HERE.
Defects will play three special UK headline shows – 28 May, Old Blue Last – London, 30 May, Asylum 2 – Birmingham and 21 May, Statans Hollow – Manchester – around the release of their debut album and they will also be joining Of Mice & Men on their tour of the UK and Europe in June as well as festival appearances at Download (UK), Graspop (Belgium), Rockharz (Germany) and Rock the Lakes (Switzerland). You can get tickets from HERE.
Talking about the new track, singer Tony Maue says, “Echo chamber is one of our proudest songs that gave me a chance to touch base on how I’ve felt over the last 16 years. It’s a song that reflects over what it means to still be here moving forward and the trauma that comes with it. It also serves as a way of addressing the elephant in the room and finally being able to close the door on that chapter of my life. Creating my own closure instead of looking for it.”
Modern Error is breathtakingly raw with emotion. Conceptually, it is a deeply cathartic album that acts as a vessel for singer Tony Maue to organise his thoughts on the trauma of being taken into care at a young age. Threaded through the album are Maue’s experiences, how the five members of the band are all connected, and why, at this moment, right now, is the right time for this band to exist. For themselves as much as anyone else.
They have already dropped six singles from the album. This year they released Modern Error, which crushes and paints a poignant message about the path the world is heading down and Lockdown which captures mental challenges. Previously, the Arena bulldozing Broken Bloodlines announced their signing to Mascot records, which followed Dream Awake, Scapegoat and End of Days.
They spent March on an exhilarating European Tour with Orbit Culture, which followed tearing through Europe at the end of 2023 with Of Mice & Men, which built on their already formidable arsenal of touring following shows with Bullet for My Valentine, Funeral for a Friend and In Flames, as well as performing at festivals such as Bloodstock, 2000Trees and The Great Escape.
All five members have their stories – Tony Maue (Vocals), Luke Genders (Guitar), James Threadwell (Guitar), David Silver (Bass) and Harry Jennings (Drums) – and the album hits with the heaviness and aggression of Lamb Of God and Machine Head, a Linkin Park-like sense of melody, and a touch of Bring Me The Horizon’s fearlessness. For all its heavy subject matter, it burns with vitality, power, passion and woven within is their outlook on the world.
“We’ve always been told to strive for perfection, but I don’t think anyone can be perfect,” Maue considers. “We are all defects in a way, but that makes us all unique.”
28 May – The Old Blue Last, London 30 May – Asylum 2, Birmingham 31 May – Satans, Manchester 14 Jun – Download Festival – Derby, UK 17 Jun – The Globe, Cardiff, UK w/Of Mice & Men 18 Jun – Forum, Tunbridge Wells, UK w/Of Mice & Men 20 Jun – Laiterie, Strasbourg, FRANCE w/Of Mice & Men 21 Jun – Le Slendid, Lille, FRANCE w/Of Mice & Men 22 Jun – Graspop Festival – Dessel, BELGIUM 24 Jun – Rockhal, Esch-Sur-Alzette, LUXEMBOURG w/Of Mice & Men 26 Jun – MusikZentrum, Hannover, GERMANY w/Of Mice & Men 27 Jun – Kavka, Antwerp, BELGIUM w/Of Mice & Men 03 – 06 Jul – Rockharz Festival – Ballenstedt, GERMANY 16 – 18 Aug – Rock the Lakes Festival – Vallamand, SWITZERLAND
Following on from their exhilarating European Tour with Orbit Culture, fast-rising UK metallers Defects have revealed the lyric video to their brand-new track, “Modern Error.” You can watch the video HERE.
The song is taken from their profoundly personal debut album, Modern Error, which will be released on 24 May via Mascot Records. Listen/Pre-Order HERE
“Our run with Orbit Culture has been amazing,” the band says. “They are like family now for sure. Great band and crew and it’s been super chilled. The shows on this run have been packed full of energy and raw intensity. It’s been overwhelming having people come up to us after buying merch and telling us that we are up there now with their favourite bands.”
The anthemic title track equally crushes and paints a poignant message as singer Tony Maue explains, “We started writing the single Modern Error back in 2019 and it came together quite quickly. I had written bits about the way the world was going and when I heard this track it fuelled me to carry on and see where it went. I think the song is a good word of warning to the people running the world and how it needs to change.”
The track follows on from recent single Lockdown, which captured the mental challenges of the pandemic. Maue explains, “The lyrics are probably some of my favourites on the album as it captures frustration towards a government and the rules we were made to follow.” This rolled into the room after the Arena bulldozing Broken Bloodlines which focuses on leaving behind negative forces in your life.
Modern Error is breathtakingly raw with emotion. Conceptually, it is a deeply cathartic album that acts as a vessel for singer Tony Maue to organise his thoughts on the trauma of being taken into care at a young age. Threaded through the album are the experiences that Maue has been through, how the five members of the band are all connected and why, at this moment, right now, is the right time for this band to exist. For themselves as much as anyone else.
There is a reason that the album has such personal themes. “I use songwriting as a tool to vent rather than be poetic,” explains Maue. He was taken into care from a young age, and that trauma and the experiences that followed are ones that he has battled with ever since. “The traumatic memories of going into care, losing my family when I was very young, and having to deal with that and adjusting myself to that kind of lifestyle, at the time was brutal. The only thing that helped me, and I’m not just saying this, was music.”
All five members have their stories – Tony Maue (Vocals), Luke Genders (Guitar), James Threadwell (Guitar), David Silver (Bass) and Harry Jennings (Drums). Jennings explains his entry, “I’d stopped enjoying playing music, which I had dedicated my life to since I was 7 years old,” he says. “It had all fallen apart. To feel like you’ve had a dream beaten out of you destroyed me as a person. It took me down a very dark path, and I did things I regret and am not proud of. I feel I’m in a position now where I can talk about it.”
Genders says, “Having the freedom to write freely in a band whilst trusting and respecting each other’s vision is something I hadn’t had in a very long time; dismissive people helped me to fuel my instrumental contributions to Modern Error. For the first time ever, I learned how to channel negativity into something positive.”
Modern Error hits with the heaviness and aggression of Lamb Of God and Machine Head, a Linkin Park-like sense of melody, and a touch of Bring Me The Horizon’s fearlessness. For all its heavy subject matter, it burns with vitality, power and passion. Woven within is their outlook on the world.
Defects smashed into 2024 on the back of a triumphant European tour with Of Mice & Men and the announcement that they will be playing this year’s Download festival. They’ve added these to their already impressive live cannon which includes shows with Bullet for My Valentine, Funeral for a Friend and In Flames as well as performing at festivals such as Bloodstock, 2000Trees and The Great Escape. They are continuing to steamroll through the year with festival slots at Download (UK), Graspop (BE), Rockharz (DE) and Rock The Lakes (CH).
“We’ve always been told to strive for perfection, but I don’t think anyone can be perfect,” Maue considers. “We are all defects in a way, but that makes us all unique.”
14-16 Jun – Download Festival – Derby, UK 20-23 Jun – Graspop Festival – Dessel, BELGIUM 03 – 06 Jul – Rockharz Festival – Ballenstedt, GERMANY 16 – 18 Aug – Rock the Lakes Festival – Vallamand, SWITZERLAND
UK metallers Defects will release their profoundly personal debut album, Modern Error, on 24 May via Mascot Records. They have also revealed the video for their brand-new song Lockdown.
Recently the band have been confirmed to play at Download (UK), Graspop (BE), Rockharz (DE) and Rock The Lakes (CH) and have just announced that they will join Orbit Culture on their UK & European “Descending Into Madness” March tour. They will call through the UK, Belgium, The Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, Czech Republic and Poland. Tickets are available from HERE.
Modern Error is breathtakingly raw with emotion. Conceptually, it is a deeply cathartic album that acts as a vessel for singer Tony Maue to organise his thoughts on the trauma of being taken into care at a young age.
Threaded through the album are the experiences that Maue has been through, how the five members of the band are all connected and why, at this moment, right now, is the right time for this band to exist. For themselves as much as anyone else.
There is a reason that the album has such personal themes. “I use songwriting as a tool to vent rather than be poetic,” explains Maue. He was taken into care from a young age, and that trauma and the experiences that followed are ones that he has battled with ever since. “The traumatic memories of going into care, losing my family when I was very young, and having to deal with that and adjusting myself to that kind of lifestyle, at the time was brutal. The only thing that helped me, and I’m not just saying this, was music.”
“We’ve always been told to strive for perfection, but I don’t think anyone can be perfect,” he considers. “We are all defects in a way, but that makes us all unique.”
This was the first time he could express these raw feelings in music. Scapegoat, Goliath and Echo Chamber are all about a family member but from different perspectives and Recurring looks at the mental loops that come with dealing with trauma.
All five members have their stories – Tony Maue (Vocals), Luke Genders (Guitar), James Threadwell (Guitar), David Silver (Bass) and Harry Jennings (Drums). Jennings explains his entry, “I’d stopped enjoying playing music, which I had dedicated my life to since I was 7 years old,” he says. “It had all fallen apart. To feel like you’ve had a dream beaten out of you destroyed me as a person. It took me down a very dark path, and I did things I regret and am not proud of. I feel I’m in a position now where I can talk about it.” “It took a lot of help from the people closest to me, and these guys threw me a life raft; I was sinking,” he adds. “What connects us all is that we’ve all got our own stories, but in a different way.”
Genders says, “Having the freedom to write freely in a band whilst trusting and respecting each other’s vision is something I hadn’t had in a very long time; dismissive people helped me to fuel my instrumental contributions to Modern Error. For the first time ever, I learned how to channel negativity into something positive.”
Modern Error hits with the heaviness and aggression of Lamb Of God and Machine Head, a Linkin Park-like sense of melody, and a touch of Bring Me The Horizon’s fearlessness. For all its heavy subject matter, it burns with vitality, power and passion. Woven within is their outlook on the world. The title-track deals with “how the planet is going to crap”, Another Heart To Bleed is about bad relationships, End of Days explores where the world is heading with greed and Dream Awake delves into being trapped in a digital reality. The new single Lockdown is about the mental challenges of the pandemic. Maue explains,”The lyrics are probably some of my favourites on the album as it captures frustration towards a government and the rules we were made to follow.”
Getting back on the stage for their first tour was a colossal moment for the band. “It was overwhelming,” remembers Maue. “In Southampton with In Flames, I came off stage and broke down. I was crying because I was happy. I can’t believe I’ve been given another chance to do this. Not only that, I couldn’t believe that everyone was digging what we were doing.”
They flourished, catapulting them to performing at Bloodstock, 2000Trees, The Great Escape, playing with Bullet for My Valentine, Funeral For A Friend and touring with Of Mice & Men. Jennings reflects, “I had times when I never thought I’d be here again. It was like someone put a defibrillator on me and woke me up from a horrible fever dream.”
What do Defects represent? It’s about believing in yourself. It’s a message to people to give themselves a break occasionally. Jennings remarks. “It’s fine to have bad days. I’ve had my fair share of times very recently. But y’know, everyone can pick themselves up, and go, I’m gonna do me.”
“I felt like I wasn’t worth anything,” Maue adds. “But now I look back, and that was wrong; I shouldn’t have been made to feel that way. When I got older, I realised I was a good person and didn’t do anything wrong. Bad things happen to good people, and you must find a way to make life worth living.”
In reaching out to someone, there can be change; in change, there can be hope. It’s in the hope that you can try to go forward and make something of yourself. We are all defects.
06 Mar – The Cathouse – Glasgow, UK w/Orbit Culture 07 Mar – Exchange – Bristol UK w/Orbit Culture 08 Mar – Rebellion – Manchester, UK w/Orbit Culture 09 Mar – Asylum – Birmingham, UK w/Orbit Culture 10 Mar – The Underworld – London, UK w/Orbit Culture 12 Mar – Zappa – Antwerp, BELGIUM w/Orbit Culture 13 Mar – Kantine – Koln, GERMANY w/Orbit Culture 14 Mar – Dynamo – Eindhoven, THE NETHERLANDS w/Orbit Culture 15 Mar – Frannz – Berlin, GERMANY w/Orbit Culture 16 Mar – Headcrash – Hamburg, GERMANY w/Orbit Culture 18 Mar – Hansa 39 – Munich, GERMANY w/Orbit Culture 19 Mar – Santeria – Milan, ITALY w/Orbit Culture 20 Mar – Dynamo – Zurich, SWITZERLAND w/Orbit Culture 21 Mar – Flex – Vienna, AUSTRIA w/Orbit Culture 23 Mar – Club Puschkin – Dresden, GERMANY w/Orbit Culture 24 Mar – Futurum – Prague, CZECH REPUBLIC w/Orbit Culture 25 Mar – Hydrozagadka – Warsaw POLAND w/Orbit Culture
14-16 Jun – Download Festival – Derby, UK 20-23 Jun – Graspop Festival – Dessel, BELGIUM 03 – 06 Jul – Rockharz Festival – Ballenstedt, GERMANY 16 – 18 Aug – Rock the Lakes Festival – Vallamand, SWITZERLAND
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