Home / News / Dutch Metallic Hardcore Act SNAKE EATER Drop Hard AF New EP ‘Al-Hakam’ [Netherlands]

Dutch Metallic Hardcore Act SNAKE EATER Drop Hard AF New EP ‘Al-Hakam’ [Netherlands]

By on October 12, 2025

Bhai heh mera.
Ghaur se suno.

After a year of wreaking havoc on the heartland of empire, SNAKE EATER finally announce their presence to the world. Their debut EP, titled “AL-HAKAM” is out now.

The EP’s title track is an anti-colonial anthem. Its title refers to one of the 99 names of Allah in Islam. Al-Hakam is The Judge, the One who can speak true justice, and who punishes those that do injustice.

The EP takes a strong stance against imperialism worldwide, with a focus on South(West) Asian historical and contemporary issues. Singer yaar-e-Aly takes a lot of his influence from protest poetry of the 19th and 20th century from these areas. Influence from poets like Bismil Azimabadi, Faiz Ahmad Faiz, and Habib Jalib are obvious to those in the know. yaar-e-Aly explains; “By taking their original texts, and translating them into my own lived experience – as a diaspora half-Pakistani man living in the empire’s core – I am able to transform the underlying message and give these texts that were written decades ago a modern context and purpose. All is of course done in reverence to the original poets.”

Sonically, the EP takes inspiration from a lot of different places. It is a conglomeration of early black metal, hardcore punk, 90s metallic hardcore, and grindcore. The band members explain the concept of the band; “SNAKE EATER is the most aggressive, violent sides of our personalities, poured into a mountain goat-shaped mold.”

The album art is inspired by old qawwali album covers, particularly a vinyl release of Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s “Haq Ali Ali”. The band’s guitarist Stijn created the artwork with nods to the aforementioned qawwali records as well as 70s punk records and 80s metal albums.

https://www.instagram.com/snakeeater.zindabad/

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