Review roundup - October 2023

Plus what do bands do when they’re not the “hot new thing” anymore?

MIL SPEC COURTESY OF BILLY HAMILTON

The running joke in hardcore used to be that bands couldn’t make it long enough to drop two LPs, and if they did, the result would be absolute garbage. In the last 15 years or so, we’ve seen far more acts reach a sort of “legacy” status. For whatever reason, the longevity of hardcore’s middle class has increased. How does a band approach their fourth or fifth release, when it becomes almost impossible to play the same sloppy power chord progressions they used on their demo?

We often see outside influence brought in, to broaden sounds and appease changing tastes. Somewhat surprisingly, the reception has been pretty warm. The Turnstiles and Terrors of the world, who keep building on their hype to get bigger and bigger, are rare. Still, many bands cultivate dedicated followings. Hardcore’s increasing ease of access for people over the age of 25 helps that a fair bit. With more lifers in the scene, fewer bands are getting washed out with the ever-changing tide. This allows long-lasting artists to lean in and explore beyond the lightning in a bottle thrashings they captured on their early material. September and October saw a few notable releases in that lane.

Harm’s Way - Common Suffering (Metal Blade)

Waiting five years between albums is risky business for hardcore bands. Harm’s Way is in a particularly tricky spot. They were one of the genre’s defining acts when their 2018 smash Posthuman dropped. Much has changed since then, with the heavy scene leaning far harder into streetwise, slamming beatdown than uber drop-tuned metalcore. The Chicago veterans tread water by doing what they’ve always done — incrementally reinventing their sound. This record isn’t “on trend” by 2023 standards, but it doesn’t sound left in the past either. Is post-metal-core a thing? Not post-metalcore, which I’m sure is entirely different from (and much worse than) what HW are doing here. I mean post-metal influenced hardcore. The churning rhythms and dissonant guitars conjure memories of bands some hipster I used to party with would bring up to (unsuccessfully) try and impress my deathcore friends, who were (unsuccessfully) trying to bang his girlfriend. I’m talking ISIS and Neurosis. It’s a slow, heavy record, but from a different angle than the overtly mechanical bent of Posthuman.

Mil-Spec - Marathon (Lockin’ Out)

Mil-Spec is a Toronto institution at this point, and while their sound has evolved, certain hallmarks ensure if you like one of their releases, you’ll probably like them all. The newest effort for Lockin’ Out is no exception. It’s a bit slower and less stompy. You can hear the vocals better. The melodic progressions injected as flourishes on 2020’s World House are foundational elements of whole songs on Marathon. They even added a third guitar player to pull off their new arrangements live. People hate when you use the term “matured” to describe a hardcore band, but I’d take a maturation over a tactless “going for it” any day. Too many bands in the last calendar year reached for melody in a shameless attempt to get popular. Mil-Spec is following a natural progression. Besides, this is still a hardcore record. The songs have mosh parts. The rhythm section retains its chunky, Revelation Records inspired backbone, even when the guitars soar ambitiously on songs like “Foreword”. I assume they’ll use that track as a live intro, if they haven’t already.

Raspberry Bulbs - The World is Empty, The Heart is Full (Hospital Productions)

You could try slapping a number of genre tags on this long-running Brooklyn band — post-punk, black metal, hardcore — none of them fit neatly. What Raspberry Bulbs does is uniquely theirs. I’ve heard them described as an exploration of the shared space between punk and black metal. You would expect a band like that to have fast parts. RB maintain an almost painstakingly mid tempo pace, especially on this record. The riffs conjure certain eras and scenes of black metal, but not the obvious second wave sound that plays in your head when someone mentions the genre. It’s black metal for the true weirdos, who’ve spent 35 years revelling in the stomp of the progenitors. These songs grind like noise-rock. Brief moments of catharsis are earned by gritting through an impenetrable morass of lo-fi riffy sludge. It’s the type of music that delights in punishing listeners. Musical masochists will find plenty to enjoy about RB’s expert level instrumentation. 99.9 per cent of the world will turn this off after the first song.

Broken Vow - Anthropocene (Triple B)

It’s fitting that Triple B released Broken Vow’s debut full length immediately after Magnitude’s sophomore effort. The two draw from a similar crop of niche 90’s vegan straight edge bands, and I think it’s safe to say the youngsters in BV look to Magnitude for inspiration. Magnitude achieved the absolute pinnacle of 90’s metallic worship through years of refinement and slavish devotion to crate-digging. Broken Vow are either still working to get there, or have different ambitions altogether. You can tell there are ex-modern metalcore kids in the band (as is to be expected in 2023). There are subtle thrash-inspired elements as well. The closing track “No More Air” pushes pretty hard against the boundaries of melodic hardcore. I could see it being a One Step Closer song if you changed the vocal approach. BV also break tradition lyrically by delving deeper into class politics. I’m not sure if the members are vegan or straight edge, but they’re definitely young, idealistic and angry. This is a modern take on the classics. Magnitude’s faithful recreation speaks more to me, but young people will probably reach for this.

Inner Peace - Demo ‘23 (Self Released)

Hardcore/hip hop crossovers have a checkered past, but Indianapolis’ Inner Peace are taking a different approach. Rap-core usually leans east coast inspired, with 90’s boom bap flows over some permutation of bouncy hardcore. Inner Peace’s Drayco McCoy is a seasoned hip hop artist with his own, distinctly modern style. The music feels pretty punk, although there’s definitely some chug and even a double-kick part. The rapping is good, as are the riffs, but the process somewhat breaks down in synthesis. Rap instrumentals don’t typically have a lot of “parts”, as songs are built around the vocals. I’m having a hard time finding a real hook on this demo with the music shifting gears so often. Even when McCoy repeats a vocal part, the riffs underneath differ. It’s definitely worth a listen, though. Tracks three and four have a great energy to them. I’d love to hear another kick at the can, especially if this works well in a live setting. Still, I think the songs need to either be a bit more repetitive or have a slightly more traditional vocal approach overtop.

Effective Relief - Demo 2023 (Self Released)

I don’t hear much about New York’s local scene, despite the city’s massive sphere of influence on modern hardcore. Like Toronto, they have enough people and spaces to support three or four entirely self contained worlds. I’m not sure where Effective Relief fit in that ecosystem. There aren’t many familiar context clues on their Bandcamp page. I found them on No Echo, where they were compared to Drug Church. Vocalist Matt Brennen does kinda sound like Patrick Kindlon, and there’s definitely a 90’s alt influence. That’s where the comparisons end for me. This is far more atonal, confrontational and noise rock-influenced than Drug Church’s melodic, loud/soft approach. Wouldn’t it be funny if they were trying for Drug Church, fucked it up, and landed on something completely different? I don’t think that’s what happened, unfortunately. These dudes have been in bands for years. I think the songs are good enough to be regionally popular. It reminds me of stuff I saw open mid-day at The Fest in 2012. Does it capture my full imagination? No. Good name though.

Inferna - Split with Intersect (Self Released)

Blake from Fugue State Zine put me onto this band by big upping them consistently. I’m glad I finally checked it out. My beef with a lot of crusty d-beat is the lack of rhythmic variety. Listening to a band play the same two drum beats — even on a short 7” — is a slog unless the vocals are dynamic. Inferna pull from influences far beyond butt flap squatter music. I think they’re younger, which is probably why their mosaic of ideas feels vital. The first song on their side of the split, “Poison”, throws a kinetic two step part into an otherwise straightforward d-beat rager. There’s a slam riff on “Forsworn”. The record closes with a chuggy breakdown that conjures 90’s Victory Records metalcore. This has all the best elements of hardcore for me. The fast parts are energetic, catchy and important, but there’s still plenty of room to dance if you don’t feel like running in a circle. I was intrigued by the mention of black metal influence in Blake’s interview. The end of “Audacity” is where that element becomes fully realized.