Lay It On the Line- Crowhurst tape review

Lay It On the Line- Crowhurst tape review

A sort of street punk mixed with melodic punk/hardcore; the production value on this tape is damn fine, very polished and clear, strong if you will.  The guitar riffs are the most notable attributes of the songs here, though the gruff but not cacophonous vocals are another worthy piece of the music here.  This is largely a mid-tempo record, the energy evenly spread across all the instruments.  Though there is not a lot of overwhelming power in any of the parts of the music, it is still rather strong, especially for hardcore that emphasizes more on melody than on rhythm.  Not a piece to be broken up into individual songs, the record as a whole is pretty good, but the individual songs don’t stand out much.  Packaging on the tape is good, but I always like a lyric sheet with any record or tape.  A good investment for those who like the other side of hardcore, the one less traveled.

-Aunty Social

The Hangdowns- demo tape review

The Hangdowns- demo tape review

Fuzzy, low-fi, slightly snotty melodic punk rock that sounds like the Germs playing Screeching Weasel songs on a four-track tape recorder.  The vocals are not gruff, but rather clear, with that traditionally nascent Midwestern twang to them.  The guitar is distorted as can be, but more in a low EQ sort of way ,where it’s not heavy, and simply drives the songs forward.  The drums are a normal old-school punk rock beat and are somewhat lost in the mix, though they can be heard on the low end.  The bass is more lost in this mix, save for a few parts where it makes an appearance due to a break in beats.  No lyrics included with the tape, but judging by the titles and what I could discern, it is appropriately described with the word fusion, “It’saight”.  The less produced sound the band has is its saving grace, because the overproduced sound is what makes melodic and pop punk horrible most of the time.  Not my kind of jam, but middle of the pack for what it is.

-Aunty Social

Dresden- Extinguish the Cross 7" review

Dresden- Extinguish the Cross 7” review

This record is a certified ripper of a single- so much energy mixed in with the epicness of crust churns out an unstoppable mix of great music.  “Extinguish the Cross” has a decent intro that builds up lots of energy and unleashed it in a very quick burst of anger and rage that comes from singer Eric “Bitty” Hammers in a raspy, rigid howl.  Proving that even crust is subject to breakdowns, Dresden comes in and puts a killer breakdown right in the middle of the song, still finishing it with raspy fury.  “Shallow Grave”, though similar in style, packs a much stronger punch.  The chorus is what does it; the back-up singer has a haunting bark that is a great companion to Bitty’s shrill howl.  Though it sucks that there were but two songs on this record, these are two punishing crust tunes that nobody should pass up.

-Aunty Social

Masakari- The Prophet Feeds CS review

Masakari- The Prophet Feeds review

This is a hodgepodge of multiple awesome influences- Tragedy is the most prominent, with a few hints of Nails, His Hero is Gone, maybe a little D-beat… undoubtedly, Masakari is among the bands doing the melodic D-beat thing Tragedy started.  However, this is one of the best bands doing it- it’s a mystery as to why these dudes didn’t open for them on May 15^th when Tragedy played Cleveland.  All points aside- Masakari’s “The Prophet Feeds” is an extremely heavy, furious, political crust album.

The vocals for the band are hoarse, thick, barking shouts and screams- perfectly suited for the music.  There’s a lot of energy there- a very different element for crust (usually, it’s just the instruments that have the power), and it’s for the better.  The guitars alternate between the fucking brutal rhythm parts that crush like an unstoppable murder vehicle, and the lead parts providing depressing, hopeless melodic interludes.  The drums are all over the place, but have an ultimate purpose of being the primary instrument that contributes to the background noise- sometimes, the guitar becomes the instrument of noise while the drums are the main focus.  The bass is well-mixed in the rest of the music, crunching along the remains of any unfilled remnants of the song.  Ultimately, the sound is comparable to Tragedy in many ways, but it has a different feel- whereas Tragedy has a desperately hopeless soundtrack for humanity’s downfall, Masakari has a soundtrack to the aftermath mankind faces (at the hands of some deity, mother nature, whatever greater power you want to believe in).  Interesting…

In addition to the killer sound the band has here, the politics are very sharply worded and placed into the music, and the album ends with a soldier’s speech about his service and how it has shamed him, given what he has seen regarding racism and the Iraq occupation- very thought-provoking.  One of the better crust albums of late, and one of the better Tragi-core bands playing out now- grab this, you won’t regret it.

-Aunty Social

Tharsis They- Ominous Silence review

Tharsis They- Ominous Silence review

When I heard the vocals for this, I was taken back to an earlier age, specifically when I was 16, and people liked high-pitched screaming metalcore with tight-clothed band members that were graduates of the emo scene; such is the sound of this band, but not quite.  Instead, this band is if the frontman of one of these aforementioned bands told the rest of his fellow members, “We’re listening to more Black Flag, keeping the metalcore sound and vocals, and writing more insightful lyrics, because this whiny-little-bitch-hate-myself and unnecessarily-vague-metaphors bullshit isn’t doing it for me anymore!”  The likelihood of someone actually saying that is literally next to nothing, but would succinctly describe Tharsis They’s record “Ominous Silence”.  The vocals are still metalcore screechy noise (but make up for it with some really good lyrics), guitars are heavy, mixing modern hardcore and metal in a carefully balanced way, and bass & drums are furiously fast, drums crackling all over the place, akin to an all-encompassing rain storm with brutally loud thunder.  In fact, this whole album is best compared to a furious thunderstorm- there are those who hate it, but it has greater purpose; it is long but often audibly satisfying; it is loud, dark, occasionally ugly, but powerful nonetheless.  Lispers beware, and hardcore, metal, and noise music fans take heed:  Tharsis They is here, and whether or not they wear tight pants, they will blast your fucking ears and blow your fucking mind, if you’re willing to pay attention.

-Aunty Social