Plead the Widow's Cause

In a move that should have the spirit-filled post-hardcore community buzzing, Resuscitation Records has unveiled plans to release a vinyl edition of “Pain Split,” the debut album by New Jersey-based band Plead the Widow’s Cause. The album, originally launched digitally and on CD in 2022, won great reviews and quickly became a favorite among fans of the genre.

“Pain Split” has been celebrated for its refreshing sound, which seamlessly merges elements of post-hardcore, punk, and classic spirit-filled hardcore. With echoes of influential bands like Strongarm, Brave Days, and Idle Threat, it’s an album that’s both hard-hitting and melodically captivating. This mix of energetic rhythms and memorable choruses ensured the album a spot on numerous Album of the Year lists.

Now, thanks to Resuscitation Records, this eight-song masterpiece is set to receive the deluxe treatment.

The vinyl edition will be a hefty 180g pressing, accompanied by an eight-page booklet brimming with lyrics and photographs that chronicle the band’s journey. While the first pressing will feature 250 units, there’s a special treat for collectors: a unique black and grey a side/b side effect variant, limited to just 100 units, produced in collaboration with KingdomCore. The other 150 units will dazzle in an electric orange hue. Grab your copy here.

The founder of Resuscitation Records shared their excitement, stating, “The energy and raw emotion of ‘Pain Split’ deserve to be enshrined in vinyl. It’s an honor for us to bring this powerful album to a format that will allow its spirit to resonate even more profoundly.”

Members of Plead the Widow’s Cause echoed these sentiments, expressing their gratitude for the overwhelming support and their anticipation for the vinyl’s launch. - IDIOTEQ

This really incredible newer hardcore band by the name of Plead The Widow’s Cause, have just put up their new Vinyl pre-orders through Resuscitation Records for the album “Pain Split” and it is available in two beautiful color options. Click right here to get your copy now before they disappear. (The KingdomCore pressing looks amazing!) - Brandon Jones - Indie Vision Music

A really cool up and coming melodic hardcore band called Plead The Widow’s Cause have just announced that their album “Pain Split” will be getting the vinyl treatment through Resuscitation Records. Pre-orders go live on August 25th and will release on October 27th. If you haven’t heard this band yet, do yourself a favor and pull them up on your favorite digital network and give their songs a whirl, you certainly won’t regret that decision. - Brandon Jones - Indie Vision Music

Could the MySpace era of metalcore be making a comeback? Time will tell, but New Jersey band Plead the Widow’s Cause doesn’t seem to care about trends, because that throwback sound can be found in spades on their debut album Pain Split.

Filled with equal parts melody and hardcore drive, Pain Split is an album that is easy to listen to, but it still packs a punch that won’t soon be forgotten. Carrying a cross-section of hardcore, easycore and punk, the sound comes across as nostalgic while also recent. The bouncy rhythms are punctuated by classic metalcore breakdowns and hardcore/gang vocals. This blend is done very well, and the balance between these divergent sounds is kept in tight control.

Pain Split handily tackles themes of justice for the voiceless, the desire to become a better person, death, longing for restoration, hypocritical faith, the pull of addiction, mental health, and an awareness of one’s shortcomings. While each theme stands on its own, what ties them all together is the sense within each song that there is a higher hope to cling to and strive for. Even in the bleakest moments on the album, there is always a tinge of that hope, whether the implications of that hope are realized or not. It is a realistic depiction of how many people walk in their faith with God: there’s an awareness that he is always there, but how often he is acknowledged or held to is the wrinkle in most stories.

While each track holds reflections of the hope of God, perhaps the most obvious is “True Love.” Lyrically, this song feels as if it pulls directly on the Psalms, particularly Psalm 8:4: “What is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?” There’s also a hint of Psalm 22: “But I am a worm and not a man.” With the honesty they’ve displayed throughout the album, the blunt question that is asked in this track is: “How can You bear the sight of me when I disgust myself? How do I compare to Him?” The hope, and answer, to that honest question, is: “With Your perfect strength, carry me. I’m waiting just for You; open my hands, let me receive.” That refrain echoes Psalm 6:2: “Have mercy on me, LORD, for I am faint; heal me, LORD, for my bones are in agony.”

The title track explores living life while ignoring God. As voiced in the track, the result is functional atheism that leaves the narrator unfulfilled. Fortunately, return and restoration is possible: “All my evil actions, and every evil thought, are taken down and hold nothing now. My soul has been bought.” With an admittance of living by their own will, having been bought, they are still welcomed in: “I’ll enter in with one eye, but with a heart that’s new. I’ll enter in with one hand; hack it off and let me, let me get to You.” It is a stark way to present total surrender. It’s as if they’re saying, “If it takes removing parts of me to be with you, so be it.”

Plead the Widow’s Cause has put together an album full of fresh sounds that somehow feel nostalgic at the same time, filled with honesty. Even when that honesty is painful and challenging to listen to, they deliver it with such conviction that it is difficult to not lean into it. It will be interesting to see if this outing gains the traction it deserves. In a scene chock-full of similar sounds, it is refreshing to hear something that stands out so distinctly.

Be sure to be following them on Facebook, bandcamp, and Instagram. Then, plug in your best headphones, or connect to your favorite speakers, and give them a listen. All their platforms can be found here.

For fans of As Cities Burn, Blindside, Close Your Eyes, and Showbread - Zachary Van Dyke - Rock On Purpose

"Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow's cause." - Isaiah 1:16-17
It's easy to get excited about the old faithfuls. 2022 boasted new albums from Kings Kaleidoscope, Norma Jean, and Becoming the Archetype, while 2023 is making some hefty promises. But it's a different sensation when an unfamiliar name drops in unexpectedly and steals the show. Exhibit A is the New Jersey-based hardcore/punk band Plead the Widow's Cause. Their debut album Pain Split (yes, it's a Pokemon reference) released in February of this year, and it's proven to have some real staying power.

Plead's sound is nothing short of refreshing. While there's a lot of paint-by-numbers metalcore out there, Plead instead blends post-hardcore, punk, and some of that classic Spirit-filled hardcore of yesteryear. Throughout the incredible eight-song journey, one can hear influence from artists ranging anywhere from Strongarm to Brave Days to idle threat. It's fast-paced, in-your-face, and heavy, but it's also melodic and even has some catchy choruses. "Diet Koresh" and "Meant To Lose" are perfect examples; the choruses of those two songs in particular tend to pop up in my memory banks from time to time. But each song is terrific - "all killer, no filler," as they say. It's an album that grabs my attention from the opening riffs and doesn't let go until it's done and over.

The aforementioned verses from the book of Isaiah are not only the source of the band's name, but also its ethos. Much like American Arson's The King Is Alive, Plead focuses a lot on true justice and action. "Disrespect For A Voice Unheard" starts the album and wastes no time getting right to the point, addressing the tragedy of people around the world that are undervalued by society, as well as actions speaking louder than words. One of my favorite lines of the whole album comes from this song: "Lip service is just spit in the wind / don't think you're making a difference when all you do is pretend / and pick and choose the ones you care." "Diet Koresh" is a bit more unique, in that it comes from the perspective of a cult leader in the midst of using God to lead a congregation of lost souls away from truth and into a false religion. But more than pointing the finger, the band mostly takes aim at themselves, humbling down and admitting to their faults and failures. "I'm Afraid of Final Goodbyes," "Drug of Choice," "Meant To Lose" - all great examples of removing the plank from our own eyes first. But perhaps my favorite example is in the title track, which primarily emphasizes how loving earthly and temporal things more than God not only distracts us from the truth ("Fully blind with both eyes open wide / from Your voice I'll try to hide / You're not beautiful to me anymore"), but keep us from entering eternity with everlasting life. The song ends victoriously, though: "I'll enter in with one eye / but with a heart that's new / I'll enter in with one hand / hack it off and let me / let me get to You."

Once again, Plead the Widow's Cause is an absolutely refreshing addition to not only the heavy music scene, but to my album collection and life. It's not often that a debut album blows me away, but Pain Split does exactly that. I've spent more time with it than just about any other album in 2022, and it hasn't failed me yet. If you haven't yet heard of them, this is your call to go and stream it, buy it on Bandcamp, pick up a CD and/or shirt, etc. If this album is already familiar to you, you're probably already doing all of the above. Easy album of the year for me. - Scott Fryberger - Jesusfreakhideout

This up and coming band play heavy punk/hardcore that is fast and spirited, passionate and with heart clenching honesty. They sound kind of like a mix of Comeback Kid, With Honor, Life In Your Way, Worthwhile, Counterparts, and Bane. A great sound and this is the absolute best debut hardcore record by a new band I’ve heard in years. If you haven’t of them yet and are dying to get your hands on some real hardcore that doesn’t suck, then give Plead The Widow's Cause a listen and add them to your playlists. - Brandon Jones - Indie Vision Music

Hi there, hello.

Welcome to this review newsletter where I use you as a sounding board for my feelings on music releases. Today we’re looking at Paint Split by Plead the Widow’s Cause.

I remember 2008/2009 when I discovered that there was such a thing as Christian Metal. Demon Hunter was the band that I got exposed to first. Since then I have explored so many subgenres of Metal: Metalcore, Thrash, Melodic Death Metal, Progressive Metal, Power Metal and all sorts.

I have listened to many bands over the years and I know the subgenres I tend to gravitate towards. Post-Hardcore is one of those that tend to be a little bit of a hit or miss for me —especially the more modern interpretations that the bands in that sub-genre have adopted. So when I was recommended Plead the Widow's Cause, I was not expecting it to really leave an impression.

BOY, WAS I WRONG!

Pain Split is the debut album from the band and it kicks off with “Disrespect for a Voice Unheard” and, the vocals on this song are definitely not unheard. While some may say the vocals are just the run-of-the-mill screamo vocals as a bad thing, I honestly found it refreshing. The whole song felt like one big nostalgia trip the first time I heard it as I had not heard this kind of sound from any music I have listened to in years.

The second track — which also happens to be the title track — continues where the first track left off. Passionate screaming vocals, emo-style cleans. Sure, some may say it’s more on the short side being less than two and a half minutes, especially since it is the title track, but I thought it was a good idea for the band not to stretch out the song for the sake of it.

“I'm Afraid of Final Goodbyes” comes in next and the opening riff is what captured my attention. But what really hit me about the song was the line “I’m afraid of final goodbyes, Even though it's not really the end”.

That’s when I realized the song was about coping with the grief of losing a loved one — a father from what I can gather — which is something I actually relate with. I find it refreshing to see Christians, make music about grief because it is something that everyone experiences at some point in their life regardless of their faith. So seeing how one views the loss from a Christian perspective (through the vehicle of good metal music) is nice.

The next track “Spirits Away" is a personal favourite, especially how the line “With love more faithful than the rising sun, my love is weak and it wanders.” was delivered. Another short and sweet track clocking in at the two-minute mark.

Another standout song is “Drug of Choice”, which talks about the struggles of dealing with addiction. The choice of words used to convey this message really makes it hit home.

Every track is well done, written and produced. The production is clean enough for listeners to hear every line sung and every note strummed but not so clean that you can not hear the organic sounds of the instruments. Also, the songs feel so much better when you follow the lyrics to hear what it is they are trying to say.

The only fault I can find in this album is that the tempo and pace of all the songs are quite similar so if one doesn’t pay attention, one may feel all the songs sound the same. But honestly, once you pay attention to the lyrics it is almost impossible to mix the songs up.

Pain Split is the perfect embodiment of short and sweet — and not the kind of sweet that would give you diabetes. In fact, you can call it a cathartic spiritual experience. With tracks that speak about themes ranging from dealing with addiction and grief to God’s love embodied in the person of Jesus; anyone looking for good quality post-hardcore with a Christian message is sure to enjoy this record. - Samson Aken'Ova - Still Small Voice