SINGLE REVIEW: EVILLE New Rocket-Fuelled Anthem “Plaything”

Eville released their new single ‘Plaything’ on the 14th of February. The Brighton-based trio have started the year on a high after being named as one of Alyx Holcombe’s One to Watch for 2025 and selected as Track Of The Week on her Radio 1 Rock Show.

The Brighton-based trio may have debuted and ascended as pioneers of Brat Metal, but Plaything sees the powerhouse mature into provocateurs of psyche-piercing post-hardcore furore with their lacerating hyper-sonic hooks, heavy riffs and indomitable drum n bass beats which precariously teeter on the edge of cataclysmic chaos.

With endless vocal transitions, Eva dons a kaleidoscope of guises with her chameleonically always-in-flux shifts from bubblegum pop siren to nu-metal lyrical waxer to outpourer visceral metal screams which cut through the mix like a razor-sharp buzzsaw to protest against capriciously selfish protagonists prone to treating others as easily discard objects of pleasure.

Happy Metal Geek says…

Having taken a first step into the ‘Brat Metal’, I am glad it was with Eville and their latest single “Plaything“. Their crushing instrumentation and with heavy riffage, thumping synths and drums, grimey and growling fast lyrics mixed with clean melodious vocals. It reminds me of a mixture of Seething Akira, The Prodigy, industrial metal and nu-metal.

“Plaything” is a song that is headbangingly effective at capturing your attention and holding it with a very tight grip. It just drives forward from the very first beat with a Prodigy-like hint before it veers off into its own adrenaline fuelled ferociousness. The vocals twist and turn from a saccharine sweet upbeat sound into visceral growling and on into cyberpunk glitching.

All are expertly steered by Eva to blend into a beautiful metal sound. Drums and bass lines keep a dark rhythmic presence alongside the driving industrial guitar sound twist the synth sound into something dangerous. It is metal. It is hip-hop. It is punk. It is industrial. It is dark cyberpunk. It is indeed Brat Metal. What a track.

With “Plaything” as an example of their style it was no time at all before I was checking out “Monster“, “Nightmare” and “Blood” amongst others in their repertoire. They are like a raved up Black Sabbath with dark heavy guitars and a cyberpunk-like beat driving it along at high speed. What a blessing for early 2025 to find Eville.

Eva Sheldrake: “In true Eville style, Plaything incites a riot of huge melodic pop choruses interwoven with hard-hitting, edgy verses. The track also marks a pivotal point in our career, exhibiting our expansive versatility and how fearless we’ve become as songwriters as we incinerate the boundaries of our sound.”

Amelia Vandergast, Executive Editor at A&R Factory: “In true trailblazing fashion, once Eville has razed one sound to the ground, they storm the next, always arriving in fresh unfuckwithable territory. Plaything is a continuation of their tirade, a departure from the familiar, and an undeniable testament to their talent which is enough to shift the tectonic plates of the alt-metal scene in favour of their supremacy.”

The juxtaposition of Eva Sheldrake’s crushing riffs and candied vocals have become the cornerstone of the Brighton-born Brat-Metal band Eville, which debuted in 2022 with their first single, Nightmare.

Joined by Milo Hemsley (drums) and Jude Richards (bass/backing vocals) the trio has been burning up the UK with their signature bratty vocals and hypersonic industrial pop spins on nu-metal. With 52k+ followers on TikTok and Instagram, Eville is turning the new generation of fans onto the 90s nu-metal scene and standing at the vanguard of the revival.

After Track of the Week commendations from BBC Radio 1’s Alyx Holcombe, extensive airplay on The Radio 1 Rock Show, Radio X, Radio 6 (Steve Lamacq), Amazing Radio, Radio 365, and RadioReverb and plaudits from TotalRock, Richer Unsigned, Punktauation, All About the Rock and Aural Aggravation, the band has been lavished with critical acclaim. Their tracks have been heard during sold-out headline shows and supporting WARGASM (UK), Delilah Bon, The Hara, Kid Bookie and BEX.