“Gimme Tinnitus” remembers mp3s, and so do Gnawing. It’s easy easy to an untrained ear to chalk up the the Richmond indie rockers as a modern day reverie for the freak scene’s good ol’ days where big, chonky riffs hit in-the-red territory casually, especially those who’ve left their dinosaur-sized prints in the past. When you funnel all that amperage into a modern plug where rock music like theirs doesn’t really have a space in the pop streaming conscious, the first single from their forthcoming sophomore album, Modern Survival Techniques, reevaluates those bare bone scratch marks, and reminds us that loud indie rock music always sticks to the walls while everything else fades into it like temporary wallpaper. “A fresh take on an old sound, got the mindset but it’s blown out / You think you’re changing the game but you’re just staking your claim,” frontman John Russell shirks over a rough, heavy-set welcome headbanging jam fleshed out by drummer Christian Monroe, guitarist Garrett Whitlow, and bassist Chris Matz. It’s a thought that just keeps ringing.

Gnawing’s Modern Survival Techniques will be released May 19th on Refresh Records.