Benumb/Premonitions of War-Split CD
(Thorp Records, 20050

Despite this being a slightly odd pairing of bands, this is one of the heaviest albums ever released by Thorp Records. Premonitions of War is up first with four songs, two of which are new songs, while the other two are very surprising covers. The band plays manic extreme music that rests somewhere between grindcore, death metal, and hardcore. Blast beats are met with guttural vocals, while the band’s unique riffs weave layers of brutality overtop. There is a bit of noisy sludge atmosphere to the band as well which helps them stand out from the pack even more. The two covers are Mississippi Queen and Born Under a Bad Sign, both of which aren’t changed that much from the original versions. Of course the versions are heavier and the vocals are more guttural, but they still work.

Benumb contributes 8 tracks of their patented grindcore. If you’ve heard any of their past albums you know exactly what to expect, raging speed, shouted vocals, and not a whole lot of deviation from their standard formula. These songs are a bit longer then they have been in the past though, covering a wider variety of tempos, but still being just as maniacal.

This is an excellent split for any of you into extreme music.

Pride Kills-Deep in the Heart
(Thorp Records, 2005)

Hardcore has come to the point where it’s sometimes hard to tell if a band is even hardcore anymore, bands are either too metal or too emo. Thankfully, Pride Kills is 100% hardcore and a boot in the face of everything that is wrong with hardcore today.

Energetic chord progressions that are just a bit melodic, and just a bit heavy, give the band a classic hardcore feel that really stands out right now. You won’t hear any bad attempts at metal riffs, or an abundance of boring breakdowns. When the band is heavy, they still sound hardcore. This isn’t about writing complicated music. It’s about playing energetic hardcore that tips it’s hat to the bands of the past, but also shows off hints of modern hardcore as well.

Lyrically this is one of the best hardcore albums I’ve heard in quite sometime. Instead of using the same old clichés, the lyrics have a personal slant and are easily related to. The opening song Driving On is about balancing the band, a job, and a family and who can’t relate to that? Life is full of decisions and choices, sometimes you stumble, but if you remember what is important, you can always keep things together.

With so many bands playing metal and trying to slime their way into the hardcore scene, this is a record that the hardcore scene needs right now. It has that classic vibe that will remind you of why you got into this style of music in the first place.

Bear Vs. Shark-Terrorhawk
(Equal Vision, 2005)

Not too much has changed since the Bear Vs. Shark debut album was released. The band still sounds like Hot Water Music, albeit they are coming into their own much more with this new album. The band plays rock I guess, with jangly guitars, driving drums, and a diverse vocal approach. They are very catchy, yet they aren’t oversimplified or simple by any stretch of the imagination.

There is a bit of a caustic, noisy vibe to the album, and some of the most melodic sections still have a noisy approach. It’s hard to put into words but there is a certain sloppy charm that the band has. It’s not off time, or out of tune or anything like that though, they just play with a lot of energy, and it comes across quite well on this album.

This definitely isn’t a band for everyone, but fans of Hot Water Music or noisy rock will undoubtedbly be into this album.

Donnybrook-Lions in this Game
(Hand of Hope, 2005)

Doonybrook reminds you of a time when hardcore still meant something and bands played with conviction and didn’t worry about trends or wearing the right clothes. This is 100% classic hardcore, and personally, I can’t get enough of it.

There is a definite Madball influence heard here. They have a sound that is definitely NYCH influenced, which definitely comes across in the slower, chunkier sections. No worries though, because there are definitely a lot of fast songs, which bring in incredibly amounts of energy sure to cause quite a stir in a live setting.

Hardcore has always been heavy, and I like when bands manage to be heavy without really sounding overly metal. Donnybrook manages to do this quite well. There are some tremendously heavy breakdowns, and heavy riffs, but things never get incredibly complicated and the hardcore vibe is always running throughout the riffs.

This is an essential purchase for all fans of hardcore music.

Nerve Gas Tragedy-Written in the Blood of the Dead
(Spook City USA, 2005)

Nerve Gas Tragedy was formed from the ashes of All Out War. Essentially is it All Out War with a new vocalist and a slightly different approach. There really isn’t much on this album that could be classified as hardcore. Truth be told, this is pretty much a straight up thrash metal record. Fast riffs, and shouted vocals are the rule of the day here.

The classic Bay Area sound mixed with hints of modern brutality would be a good description here. The vocals are definitely heavier then anything you’ll hear on a thrash record, and there are also a few breakdown riffs that definitely have more of a hardcore vibe.

The production is a bit of a letdown. The guitars are fairly thin sounding and the recording in general could have been a lot more powerful sounding. It isn’t a bad sounding album by any stretch of the imagination, but a bit more oomph would have gone a long way.

This is definitely an excellent debut, and you definitely don’t hear as much thrash influence in hardcore anymore. Hell a lot of classic hardcore albums essentially were thrash albums without the metal posturing. This is a band to watch out for.

Fight Night-Our End is Near
(Spook City, 2005)

Fight Night plays heavy hardcore without the pretensions that are becoming common place for the genre. Somewhere in between Sworn Enemy, and Hatebreed rests Fight Night. They are definitely heavy, but they are also quite fast, and really aren’t overly metallic. The song writing is quite good, but it almost seems like the guitars are out of tune at times, and it’s quite distracting. I’m not sure if the problem is the production, but to my ears something just sounds a bit off and it’s a shame because the riffs are excellent and they have some unique ideas. If you can look past the weird guitar sound, this is an excellent album of raging hardcore, marred only by a few out of tune sounding sections.

Out to Win-Beg For Life
(Thorp Records, 2005)

Mushmouth was definitely one of my favourite hardcore bands, so when they changed names to Out to Win I was pretty sure that I would still dig what they had to offer. In reality this sounds pretty much identical to Mushmouth, although they might be slightly less metallic at times.

Saying that the band follows a formula would be cutting them short, but most of the songs have fast verses followed by breakdown choruses with repeated vocal lines. I have absolutely no problem with the band sticking to their guns and playing fast pissed off hardcore, with insanely heavy breakdowns. It’s what they have always excelled at and it is no different here.

There are a few surprising moments though. The intro of Ghost Army builds nicely, and serves as a cool deviation for the band’s usual blazing speed. It’s also probably the most metallic moment on here, bringing to mind newer Slayer.

For all fans of fast, and pissed off hardcore this is a no brainer. All fans of Mushmouth need to pick this up immediately.