femtanyl - MAN BITES DOG
Entitii Records
Released on February 13th, 2026
Listening to femtanyl feels like a rush of aggro movement. Abrasive and thriving in all of its intensity, femtanyl is the Toronto digital hardcore act by Noelle Stockwood, now joined by multi-instrumentalist Juno Callender. Stockwood has gained traction among the hyperpop crowd due to its exaggerated electronic sounds and intensive production, which is reminiscent of the pop punk affinities in Frost Children and the harsher meticulous sound design of Jane Remover.
After albums like CHASER (2023) and REACTOR (2024) kicking off the act, femtanyl has matured into an established playing sold out shows and gaining positive coverage from Pitchfork, eventually landing a spot at Primavera Sound 26 and a support spot for their collaborator Danny Brown’s tour for his latest release, Stardust (2025). With this kind of hype built around femtanyl, their latest album MAN BITES DOG cranks the energy to 11.
Kicking off with “BODY OF THE PISTOL,” femtanyl immediately hits an energetic peak through a track that is no doubt breakcore in its sound, but which feels at home with some of the fuzzier elements of garage rock sounds — only giving that digital edge that an act like femtanyl can offer. Something that reappears later in the album in “SHOWS YOU THE WAY TO THE HIWAY,” a track hitting those post punk sensibilities while retaining that overloaded electronic sound that makes femtanyl’s take on that kind of songwriting unconventional and unique. Basically, think of SPIRIT OF THE BEEHIVE in tracks like “nail i couldn’t bite” and “can i receive the contact?” with a computer virus corrupting the entire thing into a digital ethereal aura.
However, the vast majority of this album doesn’t remain within this sort of songwriting, since it appeals to something closer to techno electronica sounds. For example, “VIDEO NASTY” takes on a digicore and grimey uk garage composition with noise textured sound design, almost like a harder take at something like “Thos Moser” and its sequel “Mos Thoser” by the duo Food House. The punk vocal delivery consistently remains a feature throughout all of this album. Often there are highly filtered and overdriven vocals saturating a cut through the mix — even becoming unrecognizable in “SICK OF IT.”
By way of contrast, breakcore dominates most elements of this album. With fast paced energetic beats that should get you running, if you aren’t already doing so while listening to this album. Tracks like “HELLTARGET,” “CITY,” “HEAD UP,” and “MY HEAD HURTS” get at this sound through different angles. “HELLTARGET” hits some of those heavier textured sounds featured earlier in the album. “CITY” and “HEAD UP” give more of that cyber-futuristic aesthetic that makes me feel like I am living in a PS1 game or as if I am in a scene for movies like Hackers or Lawnmower Man. But all of this culminates with “MAN BITES DOG,” an iconic track defining the breakcore and digital hardcore sound that deserves a place alongside the likes of Machine Girl’s music for what it means to the genre.
Across the board, this new album feels like femtanyl’s most polished release yet. There is a clarity and crisp element to the mix and master that makes it take a leap from femtanyl’s work in REACTOR. As a whole, you can tell how femtanyl remains femtanyl. Listening to femtanyl feels like a rush of aggro movement, something which comes across every track in this album as each set of tracks shows off some different angles at songwriting and production that highlight what femtanyl can put forward.
