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Heart-racing hardcore. Fast all the way through, with the occasional slowdown. The rabid vocals are along the same lines as Saira from Detestation, except angrier sounding and trading off with a male counterpart. The band is from Austria but the lyrics in Spanish and two of the members are from Chile, originally. Literally no space between songs, one rager after another, applied lethally.
(Al Quint, MRR, Issue 285-February 2007)
E-150/Intensity split 7” EP
Well it´s about fucking time! I´ve been hearing rumors about this split for some time now and it absolutely does not fail to impress! How can you go wrong with two of Europe´s finest hardcore bands. Both bands play fairly straightforward, yet exceptionally powerful and high charged hardcore. Fuck man, the energy just drips off this platter. For their side Barcelona´s E-150 rip through six blasts of fury including a Discharge cover, while the slightly slower paced, but appropriately named Intensity (from Sweden) crank out three rippers. Top notch stuff here.
(Mike Thorn, MRR, Issue 254-July 2004)
L´Amico Di Martucci/Cementerio Shöw split 7“ EP
Let´s start out with this, this record plays at 45, not 33 as the labels may have you believe. Now the good stuff, L´Amico Di Martucci lay down some fast thrashy hardcore jams that are along the same lines as their crucial 7” on 625 records. They borrow from all many different parts of the hardcore family (old DC hardcore, old Italian hardcore, modern thrash revivalists) and have made music the way punk is meant to be, slightly different then anything that has been played before. Cementerio Shöw don´t fair as well by my cruel hand, fast thrash that isn´t all that memorable, not bad, but compared to the flipside it´s nothing to write home about.
(Negative Tom, MRR, Issue 252-May 2004)
Disidencia 7” EP
Uruguayan fastcore. An amped up hybrid of straight edge and fast hardcore sung in Spanish complete with samples and a Lengua Armada-like handscreened looking cover. Think Los Crudos meets Life´s Halt. Deep rooted lyrics that take on issues of poverty and general inequality set to some circle pit thrashing mania. And it is an incredible expression of Heresy´s international thrash network in action.
(Stephe Perry, Equalizing Distort, Issue 3-May 2003)
A damn fine record here. This band from Uruguay sounds like heaven to me. They are a fast hardcore band, but very melodic. The vocals remind me of Martin of Crudos and Limpwrist, but as I get deeper into the record, the band sounds very melodic, maybe like Strike Anywhere. “ A Uruguayen Strike Anywhere!” Mike exclaims. Anyhow, I like this record very much, and I hope you will, too. A fine looking piece of work too.
(Will Risk, MRR, Issue 242-July 2003)
Dumbstruck/Y split 7” EP
A rougher shabbier showing for this British powerhouse. The lyrics are still dead on, but the production on their recording sounds rougher and lo fi hindering just how big their sound can be. Y, on the flipside, continue to blow doors down with their trippingly fast unrelenting blast beat attack of German precision power violence. Brain rattling, full throttle hardcore that kicks into Drop Dead gear without notice, with songs in German.
(Stephe Perry, Equalizing Distort, Issue 3-May 2003)
Dumbstruck are back with three new songs of solid, fast thrash influenced hardcore, thick with distortion and intense with volume. “Pound of Flesh” is a raging, kick ass song. Seems they´re down one member from their original the of Ripcord line-up. Y on the flip are often hailed as the Fast-core Kings of Germany but on their side of this split they´ve eased up some on the pedal, slowing down more to the speed of Dumbstruck but losing none of the vicious intensity and mad thrash sound you´ve come to expect from these German hardcore heads. High quality music from both bands, well worth your dollars.
(Wm Rage, MRR, Issue 242-July 2003)
Y/My Own Lies split LP
Two great underrated German bands. My Own Lies blitz through 14 songs in the blink of an eye. Fast as fuck with sceamed vocals reminding me of stuff Flat Earth would release, like Suffer, with lyrics in English and German. Y mix things up with slower parts, weird breakdowns, then breakneck thrash. They throw in a ripping Bastard cover just for good measure. Great record.
(Tim Brooks, MRR, Issue 230-July 02)
Los Vaticanos-nerone 666 LP
This is fucking awesome! There is a lot of stuff going on, but I´ll try to give you a picture. Los Vaticanos play metal hardcore punk with hints of melody. But it is not extremely technical (wanky) or produced metal hardcore, which is heartwarming. A lot of the songs never get into something that you could pump your fist to, because they constantly change rhythms. Most of the songs are mid tempo, and although the vocals are shouted, they are neither whiny or extremely “brutal.” They sound dissatisfied, though. The vocals actually remind me of Fall Silent, although not as high pitched. Overall this record reminds me a lot of Half Man, because of all the odd rhythms which work really really well. The lyrics are standard “ the church is rotten” or “ money is the source of all evil” and so forth, which is fine with me, because a lot of people don´t seem to get that yet.
(Will Risk, MRR, Issue 230-July 2002)
Crude B.E./Allee Der Kosmonauten split 10” EP
Cool split of German metal/hardcore here. Allee Der Kosmonauten are doing the epic mid-pace metal thing with morose minor key melodies in kind of a Uranus/One Eyed God Prophecy vein. They mix things up enough to keep this pretty interesting and at faster moments even reminded me a bit of Tragedy. Crude B.E., who I believe have at least one member of the mighty Y in their ranks, will rip you a new poopshute with their insane thrashy hardcore/grind-allways just sick fast full-throttle pummeling, with great (brief) breakdowns. These dudes are pissed. Quite a powerful split over all.
(Elliot Lange, MRR, Issue 235-December 2002)
Blood Of Others - unthinkable thought 7” EP
Power-packed hardcore erupting with speed, noise-damaged elements and dramatic turns.
From Australia and, at times, reminiscent of Econochrist, although they also embrace some hyper-fast thrash parts, as well as some killer breakdowns, particulary for “Definition.” Definitely impressed with this one.
(Al Quint, Suburban Voice, Issue 45)
Comatose 7” EP
It is when I am reviewing records like this that I get frustrated by the fact there are only so many words I can use to describe something as “brutal”. Someone really needs to invent a new batch of words for me to use so I can adequately convince you that this is some of the most bloodcurdling aural racket you are ever going to hear. Comatose is ferocious and blasting from the first second to the last. They will pulverize your eardrums with their gnashing interpretation of grindcore. While listening to this your head will get to snapping back and forth so fast you are likely to give your neck vertebrae friction burns. Think early Brutal Truth or Phobia on overdrive. What more can I say? If you love extreme music you will revere this.
(Jeb Branin, Short Fast+Loud, Issue 7-Spring 2001)
Hardcore-in-extremis grindcore, thrash and death metal in a furious combination. Tight and punnishing, though a tad monorhythmic at times. Recommended for those who can´t get enough brutality. You´ll find that here.
(Al Quint, Suburban Voice, Issue 45)
Dir Yassin – durchbrechender Geist 7“ EP
Israel has produced a small handful of extreme hardcore and death metal bands over the last 15 years, almost all of which have been totally ignored outside of their homeland. Dir Yassin may be the band that changes that. They are a fiercely maniacal fastcore band that literally oozes hate and venom. They detest the violent and scarred society they live in, one that, as they see it, promotes racism and oversimplifies complex social issues in an attempt to unify the Israeli people in their struggles against Palestine. They cry for kinship and understanding for all people, not just their “own”. They capture the turmoil of their homeland with a musical barrage that is as violent as the social conditions that surround them. If you often find yourself describing your musical preferences with the word “harsh” , then this is a record for you.
(Jeb Branin, Short Fast+Loud, Issue 7-Spring 2001)
Combine furious HC thrash with excellent political lyrics and you get the debut EP from these Israeli thrashers. This is one amazing EP. I´m not just talking about the music, the photos inside and the lyrics are powerful. It´s not often you get to hear the point of view from punks in Israel. The lyrics are top notch, attacking Israel´s society, the military, racism against Arabs, and other social ills. Dir Yassin just did their first tour in Europe and plan to hit the U.S. in the Fall, I´m there!
(Ken Pollution, Short Fast+Loud, Issue 5-Spring 2000)
D.D.I./Stalker split LP
Stalker fucking kill! Fast as fuck HC that crashes for a few seconds to pummel you slower before the annihilating speed returns. Reminds me a lot of Y and it should since Thomas from Y is in the band as well as Jens from Pink Flamingos (in fact it was Carsten from P.F. who was in Stalker, not Jens/Ed.) . You can´t go wrong with that kind of thrash know how. Some of the best thrash I´ve heard this year. The D.D.I. side is no let down. Fast, not Stalker fast, but still speedy at anyone´s radar. Catchy time changes and angry as fuck vocals with some good shouted choruses. Two great bands on one record. Comes in a gatefold jacket with a big insert with all the lyrics.
(Ken Pollution, Short Fast+Loud, Issue 7-Spring 2001)
Skrupel/Stalker split 7” EP
First off, if you haven´t heard Skrupel , you´re missing out. They do the zillion-miles-per-hour fast core thing pretty damn good with enough of their own fingerprint on it so it doesn´t sound like everything else. Stalker were the surprise of the century, they sound like a more modern Heresy “never healed”-era type of thrash band. As with most Thought Crime releases this comes highly recommended.
(Max Ward, MRR, Issue 180-May 1998)
Pink Flamingos-poppin eye effect 7” EP
Germany´s Pink Flamingos new 9 song EP is a total rager. This is blazing blurrcore with that over the top drumming that brings Heresy to mind. And the super raw vocals compliment the music quite well. The lyrics wail on about things like factory workers, media control, and not using your voice. In all honesty, I have really never gave this band a listen, but I think it´s time to start!
(Rob Coons, MRR, Issue 167-April 1997)
Skrupel-no lie 7” EP
Man, it seems like just a couple days ago I was reviewing another Skrupel 7”. As with their debut EP, Skrupel kicks out 8 songs of brutal German hardcore. The majority of the songs are at break neck speeds, with a couple slower assaults thrown in. Fans of Hail Of Rage, Suffer and Stack take notice, Skrupel´s quickly taking over.
(Max Ward, MRR, Issue 167-April 1997)
Barricades-the same anguish LP
Barricades, who are from Poland, play some solid mid-tempo to fast political punk with strong buzzing guitars and sharp angry vocals. There are a lot of tempo changes and a few melodic parts that grab your attention and keep the music flowing nicely. If you´re a big fan of catchy and unique Polish punk like I am, then this will be right up your alley.
(Rob Coons, MRR, Issue 233-October 2003)
Cluster Bomb Unit 10” EP
Wasn´t impressed by their recent live showing, but this record is way more interesting. Fucked up repetitive hardcore, enhanced by the sloppy production and the roughly distorted guitar sound. Most of the lyrics are in German so it´s hard for me to know what they are so angry about, but it sounds convincing. This is pretty cool in a Thrasher skate-rock comp kind of way. I wish I´d heard this before I saw ´em.
(Allan McNaughton, MRR, Issue 162-November 1996)