November Hardcore round up – Part 1

Let me tell ya readers, we are truly living in some coptic times. Maybe it’s the state of the world that’s got the youth riled up. Not a day goes by without some jackass banging another nail in the coffin of a hopeful outcome for this planet. Sucks for the world but hey great for angry music. My inbox has been inundated with so much fresh well executed hardcore, that it is almost getting boring to review it. With quality at such a consistently high standard it becomes very difficult for a writer, even one as erudite as I, to keep coming up with new ways to describe cool shit. To that end I actively encourage shitheel bands to get in touch with their ham fisted racket, so that I once again have a reason to hack up my scorn first thing of a morning. Anyway the hour is late and I’ve got shit to do so lets crack on with it shall we?

Anyone feeling sad about xRepentancex calling it quits should dry their eyes and go listen to xServitudex HERE. Vegan Straight Edge metal is the order of the day and it sounds exactly as one might expect. So much so that I decided to play VSE bingo whilst listening to it. Slayer riffs? Check. Speaky vocal bit? Check. Divebombs? Check. Threatening lyrics that probably won’t  be acted upon? Check.

I’ve not checked to see what the band members haircuts are like but if there’s isn’t at least one bleached bowl-cut then they are fucking posers. Musically it’s a bit more interesting than the usual Reprisal/Arkangel tribute acts that clutter up this corner of the underground. Sure there’s plenty of sanctimonious scorn and windmill inducing riffage, but there’s smart use of discordant breakdowns like One King Down used to set things off. Another track intros with sinister harmonics that remind me of the first xClearx record. I know because my old band ripped that off too.

The singers voice is fierce and he’s evidently hacked off about Gaia getting proper reamed. Lots of disdain for humanity in the lyrics, I can dig that. Path To Amnesty is absolutely savage and were I twenty years younger and not a vegan sellout I would definitely ruin the show for everyone during the breakdown in Temple. Can’t wait to hear what comes next from these gentlemen.

I had previously swerved Big Cheese simply because I thought their name was stupid and I hate whacky divs. Once again I am the massive idiot because this new 7″ Aggravated Mopery is brilliant. Members of Higher Power and Rapture team up with True Vision’s Tom Hardwick  to unashamedly rip off the Icemen 7″. Throw in some Brightside era Killing Time and Dynamo influences and you’re getting closer to the pungent whiff coming off this wedge of Cheese. Hardwick’s clearly giving it his best Carl The Mosher LARP and really who can blame him when the riffs are this fundamental? Once again the North delivers. Wrap your lugs round it HERE

Berthold City is a weird fucking name for a straight edge band aint it? I had assumed it to be some goofy euro guff like Fumbles In Life et al. Turns out Berthold City play classic sounding hardcore like Mindset or Glory.  This is straight edge hardcore for people who cant be doing with that bogus First Step boy scout nonsense but can still appreciate a sensible haircut and supportive footwear.  Its three songs of high energy/low bullshit hardcore with pissed off rugged vocals and realistic lyrics that step away from the typical ‘I like Nikes, you like Nikes, lets be best friends’ content .Instead BxC offer abrupt insight into the trials and tribulations of being an old fuck that still wants to rock an X on his fist but doesn’t want to ruin his smart pants. Gotta work in the morning ya know? Real deal shit. I like it. You will do if you’ve got owt about you. You can listen to the demo HERE

After catching Gatecreeper live at Temple Of Boom a few weeks ago I’ve been jonesing for some new death metal to tickle my walnut. I won’t pose though, I am a fucking tourist when it comes to Death Metal. I like Morbid Angel and Carcass and I’ll listen to stuff that Ager recommends but when it comes to navigating the stygian waters of underground death metal of my own volition? Forget it man. Somehow Parisian rippers Baneful Storm ended up on my radar and they fit my criteria perfectly. Demonic vocals spitting the blackened gospel over crazed Floridian riffing whilst kneeling at the Altars Of Madness. The recording is raw enough to satisfy my punk sensibilities and thick enough to feel like someones dropping a breezeblock on your skull. Big Morbid Angel vibes throughout so it’s a YES MATE from me despite the artwork being a load of rubbish. Bye.

1 thought on “November Hardcore round up – Part 1

  1. I just want to say how good this post was. In particular it led to me discovering xservitudex whose record was probably my favourite of 2017. Top work on the blog in general.

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