mercoledì 24 maggio 2017

As Statues Fall

They must have printed the wrong logo on the cover, that's the only reasonable explanation. A band composed by Joe Denunzio, Matt Domino and Bob Deep Six is essentially the Infest recent line up minus Chris Dodge. I don't know why they have chosen to release this ep under the Exit Unit monicker and, honestly, I don't even care. This is the new Infest ep and it bloody rules. Unlike the last Infest ep "days turn back", which was rejected songs from "no man's slave" recording session, these are all brand new tracks composed and recorded between 2011 and 2015. The sound is crispy and powerful, all the trademark elements that made Infest one of the best hardcore band ever are all here. Those guys are unstoppable. Not only they are touring everywhere in the world, they've been also able, in their late 40s, to assemble the BEST ep of the year. On side A we got eight perfect powerviolence butcheries, played like only the godfathers of this genre can do and dressed with some of the most negative lyrics I've read in recent times. Side B, to maintain another Infest tradition alive, has a long midpaced instrumental stomper that will make you want to smash your head against the wall again and again. This record is basically the most awesome riff ever, instantly outclassed by the following one, for the whole time it lasts. I was about to say that the current state of HC is quite sad if a bunch of old fat dudes has just released the ep of the decade. But, honestly, I don't care. It's nothing new of course but when you've invented a new sub-genre more than 25 years ago and you're still able to nail it down perfectly, you've won everything.    

lunedì 15 maggio 2017

For The Security

Let's talk about a forgotten jewel from the golden era of swedish death metal: Carbonized debut full length "for the security", released by Thrash Records outta france back in 1991. Considering that it's one of the best five album EVER that came from that scene and that Lars Rosemberg from Entombed and Christoffer Johnsson of Therion were part of the band, I cannot really understand why people don't praise it like they should. My guess is that this album is quite peculiar for your average death metal fan. It doesn't follow strictly the classic swedish death metal formula, it goes beyond it. It's full of blast beats (making Carbonized probably the first swedish grind band ever?), riffs are way far from the classic swedish DM recipes and there are a lot of tempo changes and weird song structures in general. The final result is something unique in its greatness. Death/grind with an almost psichedelic vibe going on for the whole album. If you can image a weird mix of Nihilist, Repulsion & Voivod, then you'll get a vague idea of how Carbonized sound. If they were on a bigger label than Thrash, they would have probably gotten all the attention they deserved. Essential classic. Scored this copy easily and for a very good price, too. Later stuff is too weird for my taste, but this and debut 7" are mandatory!

sabato 6 maggio 2017

CROSSED OUT interview

Great and informative posthumous interview with californian powerviolence legends Crossed Out. Taken from Bloody Ways 'zine #1 from 201?