For more than two decades, Cancer Bats have built their reputation the hard way, and on their eighth studio album, Give Me Dirt, the Canadian hardcore veterans channel every mile, every show, and every lesson learned into what they believe is the strongest record of their career. Show after show, tour after tour, they've earned their place as one of heavy music's most dependable live acts, delivering the kind of ferocious performances that leave stages wrecked and crowds begging for another song.

Since emerging from Toronto in the mid-2000s, the band has carved out an international following with a relentless touring schedule and a string of acclaimed albums, six of which earned JUNO nominations. Along the way, they've become festival favorites everywhere from Download and Reading to Slam Dunk and 2000 Trees, while building an especially loyal audience in the UK. It's a career forged through sweat rather than shortcuts, and one that shows no signs of slowing.

Give Me Dirt arrives with the confidence of a band that knows exactly who it is. Rather than reinventing themselves, Cancer Bats refine everything they've learned over thousands of shows, tightening the riffs, sharpening the hooks, and pushing their trademark mix of hardcore, metal, and punk to an even higher level. As vocalist Liam Cormier puts it, after more than 20 years of learning and evolving, the band finally feels like it's made the record it has always been working toward.

The album also reveals a more reflective side beneath the sonic assault. Nature runs through many of the songs, whether inspired by personal loss, the destructive force of wildfires, or the perspective found on remote beaches and forest trails in Nova Scotia where Cormier wrote much of the material. Motorcycle journeys through the Canadian Rockies and even the mountains of Nepal also helped shape the album's themes, turning travel into both a physical and emotional journey.

Recorded with producer Kurt Ballou at God City Studios before being completed in Canada with Ian Romano, Give Me Dirt captures the raw energy Cancer Bats have always been known for while adding new layers of depth. 

With guitarist Jackson Landry now fully integrated alongside Cormier, drummer Mike Peters, and bassist Jaye Schwarzer, Cancer Bats enter this next chapter with a refreshed lineup and renewed momentum. Give Me Dirt doesn't sound like a band looking back on 20 years of history. It sounds like one that's still determined to make its loudest statement yet.