Afgrund - "The Age Of Dumb" Review

"The Age Of Dumb". Well, I guess grindcore never won any awards for the most thought provoking album titles. This one is almost humorously straightforward, makes me wonder if there is any Thesaurus's anywhere near these fine Swede's. Whatever, punk fucking rock. Afgrund have come back after a 3 year silence with a brand new full length, which is as fierce and free of bullshit as the title they chose. Admittedly, this is the first time I've ever sat down with a full Afgrund album, mostly because I never found them very interesting. Rotten Sound/Nasum-worship grind has never really been an obsession of mine. The usual characteristics are there; super tight drumming, shout-growled vocals, and a fat guitar sound with the mid's cranked to 13. And yeah, there's nothing truly original being presented here. Some parts of this album sound like they were taken straight from "Cycles"-era Rotten Sound (see "The War On Drugs"). Please don't think I'm bad mouthing this album though, Afgrund really do know how to hold there own and make some seriously kick ass grindcore. I thoroughly enjoy this album, and I don't think there's a dud track on here. Every track is very well crafted, there's a good balance between the blazingly fast and the downright groovy, and they pull off some pretty rad stops and starts ("Planet Monsanto". Major props to these guys for talking about the devil spawn that is Monsanto too. Look it up people). Afgrund really made their songs catchy and memorable this time around. Some of the riffs these guys pull out really surprise me, and get me legitimately excited. The who album does really. It's a super solid grindcore album all the way through, and ends with one of the best face breaking grooves I've heard all year. Check it.

Rating: 8.5/10

~VII

Don't Be Dumb, Listen To Two New Afgrund Tracks!

Hot on the heals of releasing the new Phobia full-length, "Remnants of Filth", Willowtip Records is about to drop the new album from Sweden's Afgrund. Entitled "The Age Of Dumb"(subtle), Afgrund dishes out 18 tracks of ripping, modern grindcore. I honestly haven't payed much attention to this band, since they seemed to me to be just a Rotten Sound/Nasum worship band. But, you know, I like those two bands, so there really shouldn't be a reason for me to hate on Afgrund. And the two new tracks that are streaming are definitely rippers, and have convinced me to look into this band further. Listen to them now and share what you think! You can pick up the album on July 31st.

~VII