@Mehmet Emin Tuncay

Despite all the ground the sound has already covered, rock continues to reinvent itself. Old vets, new cadets, anthemic and energetic—here’s a playlist compiling what’s new in rock. Our editors update these selections every week, so if you hear something you like, add it to your library.

Behind the catch-all title of rock, you can find endless weird and wonderful gems.

In the late ’70s, ferocious young bands began stripping punk down, making it even louder and faster and, by the early ’80s, hardcore had spread around the world. With their uncompromising attitude and brutal riffs, bands like Black Flag, Minor Threat, Bad Brains and Agnostic Front launched a revolution, and these ’80s hardcore classics will make you want to get in the pit.

The hallmarks of funk metal—delirious slap bass, spiky guitar riffs and freaky syncopation—can be traced back to the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ early albums. Prior to their alt-rock heyday, Flea and co. largely pioneered the unlikely fusion of popping funk and the nascent thrash movement on their self-titled ‘84 debut and 1987’s <I>The Uplift Mofo Party Plan</I>. Throughout the late '80s and early '90s, the genre flourished thanks to artists such as Fishbone (who added horns), Faith No More (who turned up the riffage) and Living Colour (who added dizzying levels of musicianship). Though not strictly a West Coast thing, most of funk metal's prime movers and dabblers came out of California; the style even wormed its way into the hair-metal scene, with bands like Extreme and Bang Tango adding some grooviness to their Aqua Net foundations.

The rest of the world might not realise it, but Australia isn’t just beaches and sunshine and sandy-haired surfers. Some Aussies prefer spending their weekends donning black band tees and getting sweaty in circle pits. From metalcore and hardcore to death metal and more, here’s a set of heavy music we love from Australia and beyond. Our editors regularly update this playlist, so if you hear something headbang-worthy, add it to your library.