Apoptosis are a grindcore band from Hungary. This is their debut release.
So what do we have here then? 12 songs in 10 minutes? Alrighty. Frantic grindcore assault? Sure. Blistering punk attitude. Yeah. Spiky thrash sharpness. Okay.
Phew. Continue reading “Apoptosis – Monument of Ignorance (Review)”
Stheno are a blackened grindcore band from Greece. This is their début album.
I like Stheno. Their split with Grassroll introduced me to their blackened grinding ultra-violence, and I’ve been hooked ever since.
So, joy of joys, we now have a full 20 minutes of their nasty savagery to enjoy, and enjoy it we do. Continue reading “Stheno – Liberty Crawls in Waste (Review)”
Straight Hate are a Polish grindcore band and this is their début album.
Well, isn’t this a delectably savage little slice of nastiness?
Straight Hate have a nicely gritty sound that sees them rip faces off with ease over these 26 minutes. The music is fast, brutal and designed to go right for the kill. Continue reading “Straight Hate – Every Scum Is a Straight Arrow (Review)”
This is the third album from this US grindcore band.
Nails are an intense band. On You Will Never Be One of Us they take a grindcore base and add elements of hardcore and sludge metal into the mix, flawlessly creating a 22 minute album that wipes the floor with most of the competition.
The band’s dense, thick sound is almost physical, and played Continue reading “Nails – You Will Never Be One of Us (Review)”
Hailing from Denmark, Piss Vortex play Grindcore and this is their latest EP.
Piss Vortex return, subjecting an unsuspecting world to more of the angular, dissonant Grind that we so enjoyed on their self-titled début album.
As with their début, this EP is filled with interesting and inventive riffs, alongside a decent amount of Sludge influence in their killing sound. Piss Vortex don’t do things the typical way, which is only to be commended, of course.
Future Cancer is 12 minutes of savage experimental and exploratory Grindcore. There’s plenty of brutality and mayhem on offer, which the band do in their own inimitable way. These tracks focus on causing as much damage as possible from as many different directions at once, it seems.
I can’t help but be drawn into the odd time signatures and atypical riffs that the band use, and these tracks have a lot to offer someone who’s into their Grind with a side order of modern violent Hardcore and nasty Sludge.
Highly recommended.
This is the second album by US Grinders Morgue Supplier.
This is rabid, brutal Grindcore that takes some Death Metal influences into its nasty embrace, resulting in 41 minutes of punishing Deathgrind.
Fast and intense, the band launch into their assault with glee and these tracks are not for the weak.
An album of this length could get quite boring though in the wrong hands, which is where the Death Metal influence comes in; there’s more than enough tempo changes and slower, groovy riffs to provide additional variety and substance to the aggressive mix.
Scathing screams, sickening shouts and ugly growls provide the vocal contribution and, alongside the well-recorded music, makes for a very satisfying listen.
This is a really enjoyable album. The songs are well-written and provide much more depth and content than a lot of Deathgrind bands aspire to. It has the chaotic mayhem of unhinged Grindcore and the controlled slaughter inherent to Death Metal. Blend these two together and you have a recipe for a winner. It doesn’t stop there though; also add in some atypical, interesting riffs and ideas, and you end up with an album that has far more staying power than most.
A success.
Livet Som Insats are a Swedish Grindcore band. This is their second album.
With 24 songs in just under 24 minutes, you can pretty much gather the kind of thing this is going to be before you press play, and when you do you’re not disappointed. This is Swedish Grindcore played exactly as you want it to be played – fast, direct and relentless.
The songs have an audible Hardcore influence that gives the tracks a vibrancy about them. The speed work is streamlined and sharp, and when they slow down they reveal a nice heaviness to the guitars.
The singer’s rabid screams are just as streamlined and sharp as the music, with the two parts going together nicely to create the finished product.
The recording quality is right where it needs to be too and everything sounds clean, clear and brutally correct.
Check Your Grind is a really satisfying release. With a change in album title and album cover, I could easily see this being picked up and released by one of the larger labels out there in the world of Extreme Metal. For us lucky people who have already discovered it though, get your fill now.
Highly recommenced for all Grindcore fans.
Gadget are a Swedish Grindcore band and this is their third album.
Gadget play furious, vicious Grindcore that’s fast, angry and lives up to the high standards of the best of Swedish Grind.
The songs on The Great Destroyer have a modern sound that’s relentless and gripping. However, just boiling underneath the surface is enough remnants of old-school Hardcore swagger and energy to imbue the tracks with a real confidence and presence.
The singer’s vitriolic screams are a pleasure to hear; snarling, deranged diatribes are delivered with a passion bordering on insanity and the songs on this album benefit from the singer’s presence greatly.
These sharp, cutting tracks are like unstoppable slices of ultra-brutality, seamlessly performed with real fiery relish and a taste for all things bladed and dangerous. Occasionally the band slow things down to a groovier grind, but these parts are short-lived and soon degenerate into blast beats and high-speed guitars once more.
Snippets of tense melody appear here and there, just enough to enhance the songs without detracting from the main frenzied focus of the music.
I love it when bands play this kind of Grind – with a heavy, modern sound, a bleeding-edge disposition and more blast beats than you can shake a stick at, Gadget have the talent and skill to hold attention across these 27 minutes, and before you know it you’re left breathless and bewildered, wondering what just happened.
Highly recommended for all fans of quality Grindcore.
The Mild are a Grindcore band from Italy. This is their début EP.
Here we have just under 11 minutes of grinding Hardcore action. It’s sharp, nasty and liable to leave cuts.
The vocals are high pitched screams that sound absolutely scathing. The singer sounds pissed and I suspect he’s not entirely happy about something.
Each song rips along at a fair old pace, slowing down occasionally to mop up any listeners who somehow think they can get away without a good ear-bashing.
The fact that the band feel comfortable adding in some slower and mid-paced sections around the speedy main bits in such short tracks is welcome. This makes for a release that’s nicely differentiated and willing to think about pacing and not just the next fast part.
When they take their collective feet off the accelerator their Hardcore influences shine through and I can imagine them being really enjoyable live; high energy and blasting aggression clearly go well together.
Most enjoyable. Well done chaps!
Feastem are from Finland and Teething are from Spain. Both play Grindcore and they have come together to unleash this savage split on the world.
Teething start things off and offer up three tracks lasting four minutes in total.
Their music is fast, furious and full of aggression, just the way we like our Grindcore. They slow things down here and there and offer up some mid-paced groove with a Punk edge that adds to things quite nicely.
For the most part the vocals are halfway between shouts and growls, finding that sweet spot between the two that sounds harsh as Hell.
It’s a brief few songs, but enjoyable. Their blend of extremity and energetic Punk know-how makes them the epitome of Grind in many ways and if you like the style it’s hard to find fault with them.
Feastem are up next and also offer three songs, lasting a slightly longer five minutes in total.
Compared to Teething, Feastem have less of a Punk influence and offer streamlined, sharp Grindcore that has a more modern edge than their Spanish counterparts.
The tracks are full of blasting mayhem, not happy unless they’re doing their best to damage the listener’s ears by any means necessary. There’s a decent Extreme Metal influence to the guitars, although you can still hear the Punk/Hardcore influence too.
Scathing screams are the main mode of delivery for the singer, although deep growls do join in on occasion.
Another top quality Grind split between two bands that represent different points on the Grind spectrum in some ways. Which you prefer will depend on your personal preferences, and for me it’s hard to say – occasionally Teething’s more traditional approach wins the day, whereas at other times I love the blasting speed and modern delivery of Feastem. Either way, this is short enough to enjoy again and again and packs a punch regardless.
Highly recommended.
