TC TENET’s new single, “Animals,” arrives with the sort of confident thud you’d expect from a well-aimed Doc Marten hitting a hollow stage. This isn't background music for tidying your sock drawer, unless your sock drawer is a portal to a field at 3 AM where everyone’s forgotten their own name but remembers every chord. It’s a full-throated roar into the now, a soundtrack...

The second you hit play, you know exactly what kind of energy you are dealing with. It is the sonic equivalent of rolling your eyes at someone who just tried to explain your own job to you. The guitars kick in with a sarcastic bite, and the drums immediately set a pace that refuses to slow down for anyone. This is the sound of pure,...