Australian screamo/post-hardcore band Raccoon City recently returned from hiatus, gave a remastered reissue to their great 2014 album Nightlife, and are now set to release their first new album in seven years, For Nobody, Nowhere, on August 6 via Dog Knights Productions (pre-order). We’ve posted some of the singles (including “Carnation,” which we named one of the best punk songs of January), and now we’re premiering a full stream of the album, along with a track-by-track breakdown from the band.

A few things have changed for Raccoon City in the time since Nightlife (including their lineup and their band name, which used to be Raccoon City Police Department), and that’s reflected in For Nobody, Nowhere, which marks a very clear progression from its predecessor. It has just as much harsh, heavy screamo as Nightlife, but Raccoon City have really expanded their melodic side, with more soaring clean-vocal hooks and post-rocky climaxes than ever. It kind of sounds like a cross between Pianos Become the Teeth and Thursday, but even those comparisons don’t do justice to how much musical ground this album covers. It’s one hell of a post-hardcore record, and you can hear it and read the band’s track-by-track below.

TRACK-BY-TRACK BREAKDOWN BY RACCOON CITY

Nocturnus

Nocturnus is a song about shedding your skin, becoming a new person and learning to love who you have become.
It was the first song we wrote for the new album and felt like a breath of fresh air. We have all done a lot of personal growing over the years while we were on hiatus and this song felt like a fresh start for us all. With new members and new outlooks on life the lyrics to the song reflect practising self-love and realising our own worth.

Mortality

This song is reflecting on my own personal friendships and what they meant to me. Knowing that sometimes someone can mean well but the relationship can become toxic and although maybe you don’t hate each other you eventually need to separate in order to flourish.
Musically the song was really influenced by 2010’s post-hardcore bands like The Bled and Saosin.

The Abyss

This ones about watching your close friends struggle with mental health and coming to terms with the extent of how you can help. Watching them suffer while you feel helpless in your own way.
The blasty bit at the end is one of my favourites on the album.

Rite

Rite, lyrically relates to establishing habits and rituals to help you through life/each day. It goes into the ups and downs and how I might use my past experiences to strengthen my resolve and try and do better. There are a couple of little easter eggs in here for those who know my kids well.

Carnation

This one goes out to all the rich, powerful cunts who could single-handidly solve world issues but choose not too because their heads are stuck too far up their own arses.

Spirit Hunter

Spirit Hunter deals with owning your own shame, looking back on situations you’ve been through, knowing you could have done better, but didn’t. All those late nights, lying awake replaying scenarios in your head, eventually not knowing if you are even remembering it right anyway.

City of Glass

Following on from Spirit Hunter, City of Glass is told through the lens of what could have happened in those moments, maybe the person you wanted to be or should’ve been.
I love the singing bit me and Mariah do in this, it’s such a welcome contrast to the aggression of the rest of the song but also so catchy.

Menhir

Hey this ones about going to a job you hate everyday, the feeling of it draining away your soul, wondering how much longer you’re going to have to do it for. I as working in a call centre when we wrote this one, so it’s very on the nose for me. But sometimes it’s just something you’ve gotta do ya know, to feed the family. So you resign yourself to going in there and doing your best but then making the most of when you are at home with your loved ones.

Liminality

We had a song on Nightlife called Passage and I like to think of Liminality as a spiritual successor. The song goes into my own personal growth between the two releases. And I guess coming to terms with who I am and who I want to be. And knowing that it’s ok to be me, or yourself, you don’t actually have to impress anyone. Embrace what you love, even if it’s a niche music genre that flies under the radar.

H.A.V.O.C.

We had a bit of debate about what song we should close the album and Havoc was ultimately picked. It does sound like a closer and I think it thematically caps it all off. To me it’s like a realisation, just having it one day click, like I don’t have to be an asshole to people, and there is no limit to the kindness, the love I can give. Maybe I wish that would spread a bit more and people could act with some more empathy.

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Pre-order For Nobody, Nowhere here.

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