This is the début album from Swedish hardcore band Snake Tongue.
Snake Tongue play modern chaotic hardcore with a violent punk edge to it, recalling a cross between Converge, All Pigs Must Die and Botch.
Heavy, rhythmic hardcore merges together with more technical, atypical riffs to produce songs that have a good mix of both. The songs are well-written and don’t always do what you expect them to. There’s an energy here which is infectious, and the tracks drill into your skull quite early on, making themselves home in the soft fleshy matter of your brain. They’re not going anywhere any time soon.
The band’s barbed, spiked delivery is clearly wrought through a top-notch production and the winding pseudo-melodies wrap around the singer’s fierce snarls like a delicately constricting lover.
This is a release full of rage and peril, with a thoroughly modern sheen and the authenticity of scene veterans.
I always enjoy chaotic, violent hardcore when it’s done well, but I also like it when bands inject their own personality into the mix rather than just hero-worshipping the genre giants. With this in mind, Snake Tongue’s music offers a decent technical delivery alongside the venom that they spit. Add to this a very real-feeling punk aggression and you get an album that really does hit the spot.
A very satisfying listen, and a highly recommended one for fans of this kind of thing. Oh, and I really like the cover too. Kudos.
Wonderbox Metal 