Self-Corruption - "History Of Clowns" Review

Readers of this blog should know that I have a passionate love for bands from Australia. I don't know what it is about that country, but for some reason the bands from down their just know how to do shit right. I could seriously go one for hours about the Australian scene (and I will, later on). Well, the great Down Under has once again proved that it is a fertile breeding ground for awesome grindcore by spawning this stupidly impressive duo, Self-Corruption. More specifically from Melbourne, Self-Corruption's "History Of Clowns" is one of the most refreshing grindcore releases I've heard this year. Sure, there's the usual blast beats, screamed vocals, and hardcore-metallic riffs, but you can tell that these dudes are inspired by so much more than just grind. There are riffs in all different shapes, sizes, colors and textures on here. And miraculously, Self-Corruption somehow made it all make sense. Normally when I hear a melodic death metal riff come after a series of four straight grindcore songs, I'm confused and often times gravely annoyed. But here, I'm just left thinking, "Huh, this band know's what it's doing." Australian juju, I tell ya! You just don't hear grind bands doing this type of thing and doing it well, pretty much ever. Take the track "Sickle Cell" for example. That's a total thrash/melo-death metal riff, and it totally fits! Or the funky drum beat on the interlude track, "Silence.jpg". These guys clearly has a lot of ideas, and the skill to execute them well, separating Self-Corruption from the rest. Check it out!


Rating: 8.5/10

~VII