What is going on this decade, people? All sorts of genres and sounds are finding a second wind these days, many of which were almost universally panned and disliked just a few years ago. The 80s was considered one of pop music’s most artificial decades until the tail end of the 2010s… and then it was cool again. Emo rock and metal were (and are) mercilessly memed into oblivion, and then a similar aesthetic came back as emo trap/hip-hop. Pop-punk is now topping charts, for crying out loud (which is incidentally exactly what pop-punk is).

Now it’s rap-rock and nu-metal, of all things!? It was incredible in 2003, and then aged so badly that many of the bands that brought it into the mainstream actively went and explored other sounds. Recently it’s made a comeback mostly ironically in pockets of hyperpop, and then unironically as a modern refresh of the genre; through Mumbai-based artist COSTHETA (or Paritosh Bailung, as the government calls him), for example. If his single ‘FALTU ADVICE’ is anything to go by, we are in for the unlikeliest revival of them all. And absolutely no one is complaining.

People who lived through the genre’s original heyday are familiar with what made it so compelling; it deals with a range of subjects while being heavy, catchy, and endlessly groovy. One of its most underrated aspects is its versatility, which is what ‘FALTU ADVICE’ showcases best. There’s a bangin’ riff with some great tones and simple drums (the Wes Borland/ John Otto influence is one step from being glaring and literal here), and yes, the subject is more angsty than emotional. But it’s not all lip service. The vocal delivery has very much been updated to today; Paritosh chucks in some triplet and half-bar flows, plus modern pop melodies on the song’s bridge. Frankly, the fact that this combination works as well today as it did 20 years ago is the most interesting thing about it.

This sound lends itself to a lot. Back in the day, you could do almost whatever you wanted within the groove-riff-distortion-rap structure. Within this, we used to have teenage angst, hair-fringe-meme-emo vibes, deep recollections of emotion and vague meditations on death. We also used to have tacky, turn-your-brain-off, crass, boastful, fun-filled nonsense whose only goal was to get you to break your neck headbanging and have a good time, and everything in between. So if COSTHETA is on to something, well, the next few months or years are going to be interesting. His debut album is called ‘CRACKHEAD DIARIES’ and will be out soon.