Giant Killers

There are some songs that immediately give you an idea of exactly what they want to achieve and Giant Killers from Waterlines is one of those tracks. From the very beginning, there’s a real sense of movement and energy running through it, the band bringing together the heavier side of alternative music with a strong electronic influence to create something that feels designed to be experienced as much as it is listened to. There’s a confidence behind the track that makes it clear Waterlines aren’t trying to overcomplicate things. They want something energetic, memorable and capable of getting people moving and throughout its runtime, Giant Killers sticks firmly to that purpose.

What immediately makes the track interesting is the way Waterlines approach the combination of metalcore and electronic music. This isn’t simply a case of taking a fairly conventional heavy song and throwing some synths over the top. The electronic elements feel like a genuine part of the songwriting, helping to establish the rhythm and atmosphere while the guitars provide the weight and aggression underneath it. Those two sides of the sound constantly interact with each other, giving the track a nice sense of movement. When the electronic elements become more prominent, the song takes on a much more energetic and almost dance orientated personality, before the heavier guitars pull it back into more familiar territory. That contrast gives Giant Killers a lot of its character because rather than sitting at one level throughout, the song is continually shifting between different types of energy.

The guitars themselves provide exactly what they need to. There’s enough weight and aggression to keep the track firmly rooted within the heavier alternative scene but Waterlines don’t allow the guitars to completely dominate the arrangement. That restraint actually works in the song’s favour because it means the heavier moments have more impact when they arrive. If everything was constantly turned up to eleven, there wouldn’t be anywhere for the song to go but the band understand that giving the electronic and melodic sections room to breathe ultimately makes the heavier moments feel more powerful. It’s a fairly simple approach to songwriting but one that works particularly well here.

The vocals follow that same balance between aggression and accessibility. There’s enough attitude in the delivery to complement the heavier instrumentation but Giant Killers is clearly written with audience participation in mind. There are moments that feel naturally suited to being shouted back by a crowd and that’s something I could see becoming particularly effective when this song is performed live. It has that quality where you can imagine people picking up the words after only a couple of listens, which is something that can make a huge difference to a band’s live presence. A technically impressive vocal performance is one thing, but creating something that makes an audience want to join in is another, and Waterlines seem to understand that distinction.

That live quality is actually one of the strongest things about Giant Killers even while listening to it as a recorded track, there’s an underlying feeling that this is something that belongs in a room full of people rather than simply through a pair of headphones. You can picture the electronic sections building the anticipation before the heavier elements kick back in, with the guitars giving the crowd somewhere to release all that energy. There’s a physical quality to the track that makes it easy to imagine people jumping around, dancing, shouting and generally losing themselves in the moment. It doesn’t feel overly calculated either, there’s a genuine sense of fun running through it.

And I think that sense of fun is important. Heavy music can sometimes fall into the trap of believing that everything has to be incredibly serious, dark or miserable in order to have any credibility. Giant Killers doesn’t seem particularly interested in that approach. It embraces the idea that heavy music can be fun, that electronic music can sit alongside guitars without weakening them and that a band can write something designed to make people move without sacrificing the heavier elements that brought their audience to them in the first place. There’s an almost celebratory quality to the track that makes it quite easy to get into and Waterlines don’t seem embarrassed about leaning into that side of their sound.

The meaning behind the track also gives it another layer. Giant Killers feels connected to the reality of being part of the underground music scene, where bands are constantly trying to build something from the ground up. You’re playing smaller venues, taking whatever opportunities come your way, travelling for shows and trying to convince more people to pay attention to what you’re doing. The title works particularly well in that context because the giants don’t necessarily have to be specific bands or individuals. They can represent the obstacles that exist between an underground band and the level they ultimately want to reach. That gives the track a sense of determination without it ever becoming overly sentimental or self important.

Instead of turning that message into some huge emotional statement, Waterlines basically turn it into a party. There’s something quite fitting about that. The attitude isn’t one of sitting around complaining about how difficult the industry is, it’s much more about continuing to push forward regardless. There’s a defiance running underneath the track but it’s delivered through energy rather than anger. You get the feeling that the band are fully aware of the work involved in building a name for themselves but they’re choosing to enjoy the process rather than becoming consumed by it.

From a production perspective, there’s a lot to appreciate in the way the different elements have been brought together. There are plenty of opportunities for the electronic components, guitars and vocals to clash but the track maintains enough separation for each part to have its own purpose. The electronics provide the pulse and atmosphere, the guitars provide the weight and the vocals provide the human element that ties everything together. That balance is especially important for a crossover track like this because it would be very easy for one side of the sound to completely overpower the other. Instead, Waterlines allow both sides to exist comfortably within the same arrangement.

The production also benefits from the way the song doesn’t remain at one intensity for its entire runtime. The more spacious sections give the listener somewhere to breathe before the heavier moments come back around and that contrast makes the bigger sections feel more satisfying. It’s something that can sometimes get lost in modern heavy music, where every section is expected to be huge but Giant Killers understands that if everything is huge, eventually nothing feels huge. The track needs those moments of restraint to make the more explosive sections actually mean something.

There are inevitably going to be comparisons to other bands who have explored the crossover between electronic music and modern metalcore. The territory isn’t completely unexplored and listeners who spend a lot of time around the alternative scene will recognise some of the influences that have helped shape this particular sound but that doesn’t necessarily work against Waterlines. The important thing is that Giant Killers doesn’t feel like a band simply trying to recreate somebody else’s formula. The ingredients might be familiar but there’s enough personality in the way they’re being combined to make the track feel like a genuine Waterlines release rather than an exercise in following whatever happens to be popular at the moment.

If anything, the song leaves me more interested in seeing how far Waterlines can take this sound. Giant Killers establishes a strong foundation but there’s plenty of room for the band to become even more adventurous with the relationship between their electronic and heavier sides. There’s potential to push the electronics further, make the heavier sections even more unpredictable and experiment with the contrast between the two worlds. That’s not necessarily something the band needs to do immediately because the track works well as it stands but it’s certainly an interesting direction for them to have available.

One of the biggest strengths of Giant Killers is ultimately its accessibility. Someone coming from the heavier side of alternative music has enough guitars and aggression here to get stuck into, while somebody who prefers electronic music has plenty of rhythmic and melodic elements to latch onto even someone who doesn’t particularly care about genres could put this on and simply enjoy the energy of it. That’s a difficult balance to achieve because making something accessible can sometimes come at the expense of personality, but Waterlines manage to retain enough of their heavier identity to prevent the track from becoming overly polished or generic.

More than anything though, this feels like a song made for people who still believe in the underground scene. It’s for the bands loading their own gear into the back of a van, the people standing at the front of small venues, the promoters trying to put together shows, and the listeners who will travel across the country to watch a band they’ve only recently discovered. There’s a real sense of community behind the track and that makes its message much more convincing. It’s not pretending that becoming a bigger band is easy, it’s celebrating the fact that people continue trying anyway.

That makes Giant Killers feel like more than simply a heavy/electronic crossover single. Underneath all the energy and big moments, it’s a song about ambition and persistence. It’s about looking at something that seems bigger than you and deciding you’re going to try anyway. And rather than presenting that idea in a way that feels overly serious, Waterlines turn it into something you can actually have fun with. That’s probably the best way they could have approached it.

There are plenty of bands capable of making heavy music and there are plenty of bands capable of incorporating electronic elements into their sound. What matters is whether the end result gives you a reason to press play again and Giant Killers certainly has that quality. It’s catchy without becoming overly safe, heavy without becoming exhausting, electronic without losing its guitars and energetic without feeling completely chaotic. Most importantly, it feels like a song that could become even better once it’s being performed regularly in front of a crowd.

Giant Killers might not be trying to reinvent the wheel but it doesn’t need to. Waterlines have taken a combination of styles that already exists and put their own energy into it, creating something that feels genuine, enjoyable and very much designed to be played loudly. There’s a sense of ambition running through the entire track but there’s also a sense that the band are enjoying the journey rather than simply waiting for the destination and perhaps that’s what makes the title so appropriate. You don’t have to already be a giant to start thinking like one. Sometimes you just need to keep turning up, keep writing songs, keep playing shows and keep pushing until somebody finally takes notice. Giant Killers feels like Waterlines doing exactly that and if this is an indication of where they’re heading next, there’s plenty here to get excited about.