Pain Magazine delivers “Horse Song,” the fourth single from their upcoming album Violent God. The collaboration between French post-hardcore band Birds in Row, which includes singer-songwriter Quentin Sauvé, and electronic-industrial duo Maelstrom and Louisahhh finds Sauvé’s vocals weaving through lush harmonies and fractured electronic drums, creating their most introspective track yet.

The song confronts personal failure and the search for redemption head-on. Sauvé’s delivery cuts through the band’s signature blend of organic and electronic elements as he works through guilt and self-awareness. The track balances frustration with hope, oscillating from railing against the idea of being trapped to declarations of love and presence.

“Horse Song” showcases Pain Magazine’s ability to channel internal struggle into compelling music. The song’s central tension lies between self-judgment and acceptance, balancing two opposing ideas at once in an exploration of ambivalence. The track’s crescendoing plea of “Pray for me /I know love” expresses vulnerability and strength in equal measure, showing the band’s range beyond their previous politically charged singles into more personal and intimate work.

Reminiscent of Low’s powerful vocal harmonies, the song layers Sauvé and Louisahhh’s voices, intertwining over drums that sound like breaking machinery, creating a grief-ridden yet hopeful ballad for a dying world. This marks the most personal and contemplative entry in Pain Magazine’s catalog so far, hinting at the emotional depth that awaits on Violent God.

Following their exploration of systemic issues, “Horse Song” turns inward while maintaining the supergroup’s commitment to honest, uncompromising music.

About ‘Violent God’

Violent God documents survival in contemporary conditions. The album addresses mental illness, systemic exploitation, addiction, and redemption with directness. From the title track’s exploration of belief and blame to “Dead Meat’s” dissection of toxic relationships, from “Weak and Predatory’s”critique of predatory capitalism to “Magic’s” examination of addiction, Pain Magazine confronts difficult subjects without romanticizing them.

The sound combines industrial rhythms with power-pop hooks, electronic textures with guitar-driven compositions. Vocally, the album showcases Louisahhh’s dynamic range from roaring intensity to introspective delivery, Bart Balboa’s guttural growls, and Sauvé’s more contemplative approach. This is music that challenges listeners while maintaining melodic accessibility—a philosophy both camps have maintained throughout their careers.

Each member brings their established reputation for integrity and authenticity to this new venture. Birds in Row’s decade-plus history of fearlessly speaking truth to power merges seamlessly with Maelstrom and Louisahhh’s commitment to evolving creative processes and their fierce belief in disturbing complacency. The result transcends mere collaboration—it’s the birth of something genuinely novel and dangerous. Violent God demonstrates what happens when artists from different scenes share core values—integrity, authenticity, equity—and commit to exploring new territory together. Pain Magazine has created something that moves beyond simple collaboration into genuinely new sonic ground.

The album arrives October 3, 2025, via Hummus Records, following four singles that have established Pain Magazine’s approach to combining post-hardcore and electronic elements. With Violent God, they present a cohesive statement that emerged from an experimental process—sixteen days of intensive collaboration that produced something neither act could have created alone.

About Pain Magazine

Pain Magazine is the new project combining two acts celebrated in their respective fields.

From the world of post-hardcore comes French trio Birds in Row, internationally known for their ferocious, emotionally charged performances and scathing lyrics, fearlessly speaking truth to power. Veterans of the scene, the band has built a strong following since their formation in 2009, touring extensively and gracing stages of impressive festivals like Dour festival, Roadburn, and ArcTanGent while remaining true to their DIY ethics and community-minded practices.

Hailing from the industrial techno scene, Franco-American techno duo Maelstrom and Louisahhh have been close collaborators since 2013, releasing their debut album in 2023 on their own label, RAAR,‘making techno for punks’. Built upon a fierce belief in evolving processes of creation and the trust and courage that requires, the creative partners have carved a unique, powerful niche in the world of electronic music, globally touring in many forms: as an electronic hybrid act, as celebrated DJs, as solo performers, and as a live band. Whatever the form, the musical and lyrical focus of comforting the disturbed and disturbing the comfortable remains steadfast.

The collision of these two worlds happened by near-accident, a ‘let’s see what happens’ studio session in the dead of winter, and evolved from a single track into an entire album written over the course of sixteen days.

Featured image by Jodie Roszak.

SOURCE: Official Bio

LINKS:
https://www.instagram.com/painmagazineband/
https://painmagazine.bandcamp.com/