Sedem Minút Strachu/PTAO - Split 7" (2015) Review

With a consistent, unbroken string of perfect recordings, Sedem Minút Strachu have rapidly climbed up tobe one of the most beloved noisecore acts going right now. And one of my personal favorite bands period. Up there with the contemporary greats of the genre like Sete Star Sept, Shitnoise Bastards, and Penis Geyser. Last year Psychocontrol Records released a split 7" between 7M$ and Czech noisecore lifers PTAO. A veteran band who have been around since the mid nineties, very creative work, fantastic group. What an excellent record this is, it's truly a beat down. 7M$ relentlessly tear ass on their side, perfectly executing brutal noisecore in their now staple way. Nonsense, low-end, distorted walls of bass cacophonously swarm the listener. With Jan's spastic, but crazy tight blasts and drum fills giving all of the 14 "songs" on here attention grabbing and pummeling momentum. It's one of my favorite recordings by the band so far. The bass's have a nice amount of mid-range tones that give them a little more crunch then usual. And they just go off, there's no mercy, no music is spared by the noise!

PTAO's side is another slab of pure brilliance. It's a 51 song slathering of orchestrated blasts from a finely aged band that has not gotten weary at all. Short 3-4 second microsongs make up the bulk of this piece. With varying intros and transitions between each attack of dual vocal grunts and blown out guitar. The classic stick clicks and snare hits are there. But PTAO also incorporate some stuttering stereo panning noises, samples, and drum beats of various styles during the course of their time here. I can't help but be captivated and in awe of the craftsmenship and creativity here. It's a wonderful sounding recording too, quality was not spared any expenses on this side. Both sides get two thumb's way up from ol' VII.

Psychocontrol did a wonderful packaging job for this split. The cover is a super thick and glossy fold over sleeve. Everything is neat and tidy, fully detailed and has numbered inner sleeves.

Pick this up, I implore you.

Listen: HERE!

~VII

Parfumerie - "Transmundane and Unprofessional Delocation of Superfluous Extremities, Organs and Rare Tissues E.P." 7" (2015) Review

The debut Parfumerie EP/demo first emerged from Canada and into the grind world in 2014, and pretty quickly turned a lot of heads. Not only because of the members associated with the band (the usual crew behind Archagathus, Horrible Pain, Violent Gorge, Meatus, etc.), but because it was so.fucking.good. Over a year later, an excellent group of labels got together and gave it a proper, beautiful vinyl treatment. This excellent and disgusting record is one of the best recent examples of goregrind that rocks! Right from the monstrous intro track "Venereal Excavation", which grooves like mash of Mammoth Grinder and Dead Infection. The power of the riff and the love of the golden age of gore and deathgrind is fully embraced in Parfumerie. You won't find a single slam or even a cheesy sample used. Just powerful songwriting and catchy as hell riffs that fester like a putrefied corpse. And layers of over the top, monstrous gurgles and barfed out roars. This thing had to have been recorded on a 4 track tape recorder. It just had to be. It sounds like an old demo that was kept in an attic since the 90's. All six of Parfumerie's songs are quality rippers, and the closing cover of Regurgitate's "Deranged Menarche Injection" is the perfect tribute to a band that gives so much inspiration.

This still remains the only Parfumerie recording that's been released. I'd assume the members other bands take up a majority of their attention, but it would be cool to see a return. If not, they left their mark with a memorable little EP. I highly recommend it.

Listen: HERE!

~VII

Sordo/OG Jammer - Split 7" (2015) Review

I wish Tyson would kick me in the head for taking this long to score this beautiful gem. That's some pain everyone who doesn't have this record should feel, everyday. Seriously though, if you've been wanting a proper follow-up from Sordo to their perfect "Tactical Precision Violence" 7", you're going to get it here. This split 7" with LA's OG Jammer is a monster. Released by Eddie from Sordo's own label Dina Dog Records last year.

Sordo's side must be leftover tracks from the "Tactical Precision Violence" session. That flawless, Disgusting, punchy and heavy recording is completely the same here. Also they reuse a song featured on their split tape with Chulo from a few years ago ("Chris Doesn't Like Noisecore", but without the long sample at the end). The "leftover" part should not have you worried at all, Sordo bring the pain in full force. There isn't a single dud or dull moment on the whole side. If you like having your ears romped by some catchy-ass drum and bass powerviolence, this is essential. But then again what Sordo release isn't? Almost every track incorporates some sort of Myke Tyson based sample. They are almost as wonderful as the songs themselves. Best samples in the game, Sordo still has that award. This is the real deal shit right here. By far my 2nd favorite Sordo recording.

OG Jammer were a new listen for me. While there's no one that can match Sordo's side in enjoyment level, this powerviolence group does a decent enough job on their short side. You like random, bassy microphone peaks in your recording? OG Jammer got you covered. This recording is a rough one, and a bit distracting at times. Their side consists of five raw and overblown bursts of fastcore/violence. They remind me of a mix of Godeater, Detroit and Goner. Sordo's side does make this a one-sider record for me a majority of the time. But whenever I play OG's side I enjoy more then I remember doing previously. I might track down their other recordings.

This record came in a "green" color variant, probably limited to 100. I don't know, it seems more blue to me. But I guess someone will call is sea foam green, or something like that. It's mine, whatever it is!

Buy this.

~VII

Couple Skate - "Tales From The Corpse" (2015) Review

Man, there was a lot of talk and anticipation floating around the release of this lil' ol 7" record. Personally I was looking forward to hearing this new Couple Skate EP for a couple years. Their vocalist Kyle Schroeder has been a musical commrade of mine from afar for a long time. And knowing him, I was pretty instinctually positive that "Tales From The Corpse" would be good. Couple Skate is a mince/gore trio from Lima, Ohio and has been spreading the gore gospel for a couple solid years. Their debut vinyl EP, "Tales From The Corpse", was finally released towards the end of 2015, thanks in part to over half a dozen labels.

Now generally, if you're in a goregrind band, you will generally be pulling from one of two sides of influences. The side that goes for more of a "riff composed", polka beat/blast ridden, deathy and raw approach (Regurgitate, Dead Infection, early Carcass, Maggut, Squash Bowels, etc). Or the even more raw, noise guitar, toilet vocal, structureless, blast abuse side (Last Days of Humanity, Anal Birth (gorenoise), Inopexia, Phyllomedusa, among countless others). While all these artists are more then likely adored by the members of Couple Skate, the old-school sounds are proudly in their music. They've taken the bold step to actually steer away from the easier latter half and make Couple Skate *gasp* a band. With some real *wait for it* lyrics, and write some *omg* sick riffs! And they do it very well I might add. Look at that, my gut was right. Always trust the organs.

Couple Skate do not set out to revolutionize any part of the goregrind genre on "Tales From The Corpse". You know whatcha gonna get, and they give it to you in every way you could like. All twelve and a half minutes of this EP are incredibly solid and fun. A perfectly balanced amount of super blasting and gore stomping grooves. The classic riffs and chord progressions we've heard hundreds of times are here, and played well. There's Regurgitate and Agathocles worship in abundance. Thankfully they do manage to sneak in a couple real attention grabbings riffs that remind me a lot of Internal Rot. Side B is definitely my favorite side of the record. The opener "Abra Cadaver" has all the fun of a good Rompeprop or Rectal Smegma track. And something about all the songs afterwords just generally sound more savage and aggressive then the flip side of the record. The quantity of samples used is surprisingly very low and used well, and overall the EP sounds very good. Counting the fact that it was recorded on a cassette 4track. The drums, one of my favorite parts of grind, are just a tad too low in the mix which is a shame. I can't hear that snare go BOOM BOOM PANG!

Plenty of people had their hands in putting this out. You got a lot of options and places to pick a copy up from! No excuses! Also let's get more bands to stick three or more variations of their logo on their record sleeves. More!

You should check this out, I give it a solid, necrotic thumbs up!

LINK TO LISTEN: Here!

~VII

Headless Death - "Poxy Death" EP

Australia Alert!!! Another brilliant provocateur of brutally from the magical city of Melbourne. And honestly a very new one for me. Even though Headless Death have been steadily putting out dynamite material since 2012. A quartet from Melbourne, who play a what I can only call bestial grindcore. Or super heavy, deathy, war grind. A style they bring out in full honest force again on their newest tape, "Poxy Death". On here we have three new songs, and a rerecording of the title track of their last EP called "Under the Mushroom". As well as a track that I guess is a Ringworm cover at the end. But I don't listen to Ringworm, and a quick Youtube search shows me a song much different then HD's interpretation so I'm lost. "Poxy Death" for the most part is perfect example of brutal hyperblast grind done perfectly well. In a very Australian way, I can say now. Distinctly rich with the same sounds that countrymen Internal Rot and Coffin Birth have perfected. Though with a much, much, much rawer recording. The musical performances here are relentless, particularly in the drumming. The speed that Headless Death maintain would make any average-joe-band sweat trying to keep up. The death soaked riffs are here at some of their most primal and savage, HD keep the variation levels nice an balanced. Definitely letting in a lot more space for more groovy, headbangable passages. The opener "Underground Existence" has a pretty sweet hXc mosh part that pops every now and again. The following track "Not A Worthy Death" opens with a very attention grabbing bass and drum riff, and utilizes some twisted dissonance and melodies. I'm not too hot on the closing, mysterious Ringworm cover though. The slow-song-at-the-end cliche is getting way too, well cliche for me. This track unfortunately does nothing to change that. The super sluggish punk beat towards the end is where I especially loose interest. What "Poxy Death" gives we on the whole first half though is completely fantastic. Headless Death are yet another knight in shining armor for Australia's grindcore army.

~VII

Sickmark - "s/t" II"

The name Sickmark might not immediately strike any bells with most of you. If you were around the ol' internet circles a lot last year, you may have stumbled upon their first 7" EP. What was actually one of my favorite records of 2014. A particularly filthy gem of a powerviolence EP. In that super negative/super serious and mean style of the genre. The first self-titled EP met all the criteria I give bands of that style, and more. Displaying serious technical and frantic songwriting chops, and having a very gruff recording and aesthetic that was also loud as fuck. I really dug the bass in one channel, guitar in the other sound too (fun fact, they switch which channels they're in on this record, haha). Sickmarks newest self-titled offering, which has some seriously baddass cover art, yet again, immediately shows that they are comfortably and confidently sticking to their comfort zones. A bit of a more lo-fi recording this time around though, but the band still sounds incredibly tough and relentless. Sickmark are still an impressively quick and tight unit, and the songs they write on here are brutally breakneck. I did pick up on a lot more focus on grooves this time around. Lots of sprinkles of blasts sandwiched between disgusting breakdowns, too a largely great effect yet again. The track "Hammer" has a particularly big WTF groove in it. Very strong influences are taken from the negative heavyweights, maybe even more so now. Bands like Sea of Shit (they even have a track with the namesake on here), Socially Retarded, and Despise You are obvious comparisons. Or like if Spazz really hated life. This kind of style does tend to sound pretty familiar after a while, and the songs on this EP honestly do tend to all melt together. There is almost no real trace of variation here, which is totally not a bad thing at all, don't get me wrong. But a little bit of the excitement is lost for me when I can almost predict what's going to happen next. It's a solid, consistent filth storm, a very good follow up. Their first EP definitely did have a little bit more going on, but this new EP is still a total ripper. Definitely check this band out, and try and see them on their upcoming August USA tour with PA's, Constraint.

~VII

+HIRS+/Water Torture - Split Review

It's been far to long since I've talked about +HIRS+. Certainly not due to the Philly outfits lack of productivity. It seems every week they have another split tape, record, lathe cut, wax cylinder, whatever coming out. Mostly been sticking with bands close to their own home to split with (APE!, Bubonic Bear, Cocaine Breath, etc), but the very highly anticipated split 7" with Buffalo's Water Torture (which I believe was first announced sometime last year), was finally released a couple months ago to the hungry consumers. Very interesting formatting with this split, one that I really haven't seen before. +HIRS+ start this unholy wax disc off with their new anthem "Fuck Everything", entering with chaotic blasts into a power-stomping bass break. They've really become utter masters at writing incredibly captivating short songs, the +HIRS+ way. You can pretty much listen to any single track on this record and totally understand what this band is trying to do. It just shows that tremendous effort and engineering went into making these songs, at least to me. Since the Bubonic Bear split, +HIRS+ have just sounded incredible, and this records no different. Loud, punching drums, more thunderous bass, layers of intense vocals, it's an excellent display of sound. +HIRS+ give a five song assault before slithering into Water Torture's contribution, in a segue that had me tweaked out for a few seconds. I was curious to see what WT would be toying around with on here, and in a very interesting move they've done a throwback to the raw, micro song template from the split with thedowngoing. Distant, rumbling static looms and transitions these songs, again very raw and basement-noisecore sounding. It's a style that's I find very interesting and sometimes astounding if it's done well, but Water Torture's take on it this time falls just a little bit short. All of these nine tracks sound like little cut n' paste remixes of already existing WT songs, trying to combine both of their biggest elements in a mere few seconds. Entering with a slow, tom-hit riff and then a few more seconds of blasting and vocals. Then more noise. Wouldn't be a problem, but basically none of these tracks stick out for any reason besides then being jarringly short. The two tracks that do the best job with this restricted songwriting style, "Not-Seen" and "Populous" are great, but again leave me wanting more. Thankfully not leaving me stranded and craving more noise, +HIRS+ come back again after Water Torture ceases with four more powerful tracks. The chug monster, "A Very Long List Of Men To Kill" acting as a ground-punching wake up. This "B-side" has +HIRS+ showing off some of their slowest passages and best riffs of the whole record. Closing out with the two of the real highlight  tracks, "Amputated Littered Hand" and "Bong Water Torture". A real proper ending if you ask me. It's good to see with bands toying around with stuff even as simple as track placement. This split has had a lot of hold-ups and setbacks in it's conception. Hopefully everyone has got their copies now. If you don't, I believe it's sold out.

~VII

Detroit/thedowngoing - Split Cassette Review

Man, what an awesome split. Can we give a collective round of applause to the always on point Hygiene Records, for throwing down the dough for this excellent pairing of two super overlooked bands? Starting off with Detroit. A rawasfuk, grinding fastcore trio from Canada that's as mean and intense as the city they're named after. These guys have always had a pretty solid and consistent output of quality tunes, and their side is no different. This time going for more of a straight-up fastcore style then usual, with tons of Spazz-ish barks and going to almost Quattro Stagioni tempos. It's a pretty unrelenting assault, made all the more powerful by the screeching, clanging, grinding-sheet-metal guitar tone and machine gun snare hits. No faults here with Detroit's side, at all. And what an excellent return for Australia's best noisy grinders, thedowngoing! Though I will say that if you're going in expecting the same kind of sound they had on "ATHOUSANDYEARSOFDARKNESS" or their split with Water Torture, you might be a little disappointed. The recording here is much more clean and polished, and they've done away with pretty much any vocal effects. Something that would normally spell disaster for a band who have stuck with a certain sound for basically their whole existence. But you know, to me, it isn't even an issue. Because thedowngoing are still writing some tremendous riffs and songs, no matter how smothered in noise they may or may not be. They take the discordant style of grinding and make it all their own, which is something I've always given them props for. Thedowngoing actually create captivating and powerful songs, instead of just taking the usual "noisegrind piss". Which is still great, and a style that I very much like as well, but they surpass it. Creating a sound that has me clinging to each second their side plays. I love this split. Stream it down below!

Pick up a copy of the tape over at Hygiene Records: HERE

~VII

In Disgust/SFN - Split Review

I honestly can't believe I'm finally getting to review this record. FINALLY, after years 

of far to little updates, record plant qualms, etc. The long awaited split 1-sided 7" between SFN and In Disgust is out and available to purchase, and I finally get to review an In Disgust record! Man, I remember reading about this split a few years ago on the Drugged Conscience label site. Back then it was going to be a 5", and all it said that it was coming out soon, no other details. I believe this was after I was still healing from the soul crushing news of their break-up, so I was excited as can be! The thought of new material, even after disbanding warmed my heart. On top of that, they would be sharing wax with the incredible SFN! 

In Disgust are a band that has over the past several years become widely accepted and loved by grind fans around the globe. A simple power trio from San Jose who created some of the most beastly and crushing grindcore I've ever heard from 2006-2010. I don't think I have to introduce the infamous "Reality Choke" 10" to any of you, or get into explaining the fucking masterpiece that it is. Seriously, it's in my top 5 favorite grindcore records ever. To this day, I still get that I-wanna-destroy-something feeling when I listen to it. It hasn't lost a drop of it's intensity in the 6+ years since it's release. Though it was a record that they never really managed to top in my opinion. They came close with their side of their split 12" with PLF, but then called it quits in 2010. Laying any chance they had to outdo themselves to rest. But now we have this split, reconfigured as a single sided 7", featuring almost a minute and a half of new In Disgust material. 

So I've been listening to it over and over and over again, and each time I keep having the same thoughts: What the fuck is going on here?! What is this? What happened? Did all of them just get the most insane fetishes for microsongs and feedback? Or an overpowering OCD phobia of writing songs with more then two riffs? Or even writing songs in general? Need I remind you that this is the recorded comeback of one of the best bands in modern grind, and their final conclusion was to put four songs to wax and have half of it be feedback? That's seriously what's on here, there is an equal amount of feedback to actual music. And no, it's not just because they were given a short amount of space for split, this is just lazy songwriting. I have no idea when this recording session actually took place (it was at least before 2013), but this shouldn't be acceptable for any release from a band of this caliber.  It's like they were just given half an hour of studio time available and came up with stuff on the spot! I'm shocked that the same band who gave us "To Live A Lie" settled with "Sketch" (one second of blast, four open string hits, 2 more second of blast, end). Oh please, say it isn't so that the band that wrote "Cali Smile" also put out "Steel Trap" (a 30 second instrumental with one riff). Matt's incredible growl vocals aren't even here, come on! To me this is just a huge middle finger to anyone that waited for this record. I was not expecting just the sheer amount of laziness or lack of ambition that smothers these tracks. This is In Disgust we're talking about, they have it in them to do so much better then this. Fortunately, the SFN tracks are definitely no disappointment. This sadly broken up Wisconsin grind trio bring three posthumous tracks to the table, and they proudly display everything I love about this band. Incredibly tight and frenzied songwriting with much more colorful and inventive riffs and drumming then fast bands normally use. SFN waste no time ripping everything apart on their "side"; riffs and snare rolls fly out at warp speed under some genuinely aggro sounding vocals. Here more then ever, SFN sound to me like an excellent hybrid of Sidetracked and Iron Lung. SFN are masters of that herky-jery/stop-start songwriting style, but still manage to be heavy, gritty sounding. Using lots of dissonance and sudden tempo shifts for extra beef. On top of that, this is the best recording they've ever had. This here, is a good way to go out. So in the end, I guess at least one band came out of this a winner. And It seems that In Disgust have broken up yet again, so yeah, I guess that's it. Bada boom. Not a way to great way to go out for good,  Listen to "Reality Choke".

Rating: 5/10

~VII

INTHESHIT/Priapus - Split Review

I had heard of this splits inception quite a while ago, and I was worried that It would never see the light of day. Mostly due to Give Praise Record's (the label responsible for this release) recent interesting and almost complete 180 from releasing grind/fastcore, to putting out mostly weird thrash and oversea's punk rawk this last year. I was beginning to think that one of my favorite labels would never be the same again, and even more unfortunately, that the records that I had heard were coming out would never see the light of day. Thankfully, you can't keep this kind of grind down, and Give Praise is back on track and the fabled INTHESHIT/Priapus split is finally released. Boston's INTHESHIT are a group that I honestly haven't heard much from since I got their "King Of The Grindcore Jungle" tape back in 2012 or something. Three songs this time around, and my first time hearing their new singer. Who replaced the Jon Chang-esque vocals of "KotGJ" with more of a tuff, Ion Dissonance/Lack of Interest style. In a state who's biggest musical export right now seems to be unapologetic 80's/90's worshipping hardcore, it's not hard to see why this kind of delivery permeated the group. INTHESHIT have a massive sound on here, churning waves of guitars riffs and booming drums tumble and stampede over each other all over their side. It's a frenzied, flurried 3-song helping of punishing grind, but unfortunately they never seem to quite lock in together as a unit on here. Outside of a few slower breakdowns, the rest of this just sounds loose and not together. Not in a very charming way either. You know when you accidentally play a 45 RPM record at 33 RPM and the music sounds sort of bloated and stretched, it's kind of like that. It's not outright unenjoyable, but not something I can see myself returning too very often. Which makes the technical brutality of Priapus's 2-song contribution all the more explosive. Priapus, as you all should already know, are one of the most underrated grindcore bands going at this very moment. Some of the best stuff I label "tech-grind" around; crushingly heavy, tight, expertly recorded and mastered, and with Maruta, Pig Destroyer and Malignancy influences displayed proudly on their sleeves. OG actually debuted the opening track from their side "Adversus", on our site a while ago, and it's as awesome a track now as it was back then. Mach 3 gravity blasts and matching guitar noodling with a crushing, groovy breakdown riff towards the end, and some very nice vocal variations. The next track, "Failure Addict", and almost 3 minute riff machine track, full of colorful harmonics, and double bass that makes a jackhammer seem slow. Priapus are a great band for this kind of style, mainly due to their great song craft and chemistry as players. With most grind like this, it just seems like a bunch of dudes just trying to right stupidly complex music. Priapus on the other hand, while still being incredibly technical, still makes their songs stick out. Every vocal "bleah!", growl or scream seems to be thought out, and the guitars and drums compliment each other the same way Brian and Scott did in Pig Destroyer. Each instrument grooves together and helps make the other more impactful. Rest assured, I won't be surprised with Willowtip or Relapse snatches them up. Listen to the whole split here and be sure to buy the vinyl at Give Praise Records.

Rating: 7.5/10

~VII

Gripe - "In His Image" Review

Operation Grindcore has had a long, mutually supportive and overall great relationship with Athen, GA's Gripe. One of the first bands I remember Andrew hyping me up on were these guys, and the support that we've maintained for each other over the last few years has been solid. So it's with a bit of sentimental proudness that I am happy to be finally reviewing their first (and sadly last) full length LP, "In His Image". A team-release effort from Hygiene and Witch Bukkake Records. With the return of their original singer DJ back on the mic. And this really does feel like a really excellent throwback to their first release, "The Future Doesn't Need You". Gripe's attack and message are clear, right from the Dystopia influenced opener "7 Billion Reasons Not To Reproduce". These guys got a bone to pick with quite a few people and corporate entities. Chances are they don't like you, and their gonna yell about it, a lot. A great return from DJ's shredded vocals!! I hope he didn't spit out a couple throat chunks after some of these takes. Lot's of varied vocals from high screams, growls, crusty barks and throaty wretches. All pissed, all in your ears. This is some excellent blast beaten hatred, by far their best and fullest recording too. It's a powerful recording, but they've maintained every bit of their raw, crusty sound. I guess a modern comparison would be the last few Sick/Tired EP's, that should give you some idea. Gripe always had this great collection of influences in their music, "In His Image" is no different. The strong Pig Destroyer and Assück sounds are still their, a few more dissonant riffs for some extra flavor. With some very good use's of slower tracks, particularly the closing track, "Snowden". I really appreciate when a grind band takes some time and tries to make the obligatory "slow closing track" a little more different. This track has a great dissolve from beastly dissonant grind into an excellent, layered slow dirge that end's on a seemingly unfinished note. A possible wishful sign that the band will maybe someday get back for a second and give us some new tunes. More grindcore psalms of anger as we get deeper and deeper down the rabbit hole of this confusing world please! Excellent album, and a great finale for a great band. Listen to the record here. And you can pick up the limited edition "dead cop" splatter vinyl here as well as kick as records from Lifes, Short Walk, Beg, Abuse. and more!

Rating: 8.5/10

~VII

Disciples Of Christ - "Decomposition Fantasy" Review

Playing a teeny bit of catch up here, as this record was kinda-technically released in 2013. Had I been as close attention as I should have, you would have bet your ass that this here recording would have

safely landed in the top 5 spot of my year end list. The band already made my favorite record of the year with their split 12" with Triac, and "Decomposition Fantasy" just pushes their inevitable domination of the grind world even closer to the present. Right away, screeching feedback and dirty production kick start the opening track "Cultivate Dissolution", the chaotic messy sound that I loved so much on that split are still here, and even pumped up a bit. This record is filthy. The guitars sound like slabbing metal sheets amplified through a broken amplifier. with Chris Moore's always monstrous drums hits providing some sort of structure for new ears. Underneath all the fuzz and treble lies some of the finely crafted grindcore to come out in 2013. Interesting songwriting 101, D.O.C are here to school you. This band works as a total unit, making every note and transition count. Constantly changing riffs and switching off vocals at a desperate, frantic rate. Blasting, high momentum riffs, leading seamlessly into crushing breaks or a choice "BLEH!" shout. Tracks like "Varicose Veins"   and "Pus Ride" showcase some of the best moments on this record using some of those dynamics. This band makes brutal grind in a way that I don't hear many other bands doing, or any for that matter, and the first five tracks will kick your head off. And then we have the last track, which is actually a cover. It's kinda no secret D.O.C have a thing for weird hardcore/punk bands. The cover art layout for the Triac split was a total Psychic TV homage, and the art here has a very distinct Rudimentary Peni look. So it shouldn't come off that surprising that they've gone and covered the Wire track, "Pink Flag", from their groundbreaking album of the same name. As is to be expected, they pull the song off very well, keeping the same general song and structure in tact, but making it their own, adding some noisy sound deterioration and blasts at the end. Proper. his band can do no wrong, pick up a copy at Rorschach Records! Listen to the record here!

Rating: 9.5/10

~VII

Parfumerie - "Transmundane and Unprofessional Delocation of Superfluous Extremities and Rare Tissues E​.​P." Review

Though I rarely get around to posting about it on the site, I do have a very big soft spot in my heart for goregrind. It's hard to find a genre as ridiculous, gimmicky, or just plain fun as this one in extreme music. Trouble is, it's hard for a goreginrd band to impress me enough to warrant posting, outside of Phyllomedusa. But a few weeks ago some live videos of this band Parfumerie caught my eye and I was blow away by their energy, catchy songs and stage presence. I've been looking for recordings ever since and it appears that yesterday a whole EP was posted! Parfumerie is actually a trio featuring Joe (on bass and vocals) and Dan (on drums) of Archagathus, and they lend their great, catchy song craft heavily into this project. "Transmundane and Unprofessional Delocation of Superfluous Extremities and Rare Tissues" is an instantly enjoyable goregrind record, right from the thick beefy, Coffins-ish instrumental intro song, "Venereal Excavation", with some great grooving, chugs and some great trembelo picked riffs. That leads right into the blaster track "Upheaval Of Partially Digested Innards". Each track is a perfect little piece of goregrind compositioning. Great, memorable riffs and song writing bits like the evolving groove of the end riff on the closing track, "Deranged Menarche Injection -//- Regurgitate",  show to me that the same care and attention was given to this band as it was to the guys other main projects. Not to mention, this thing sounds fantastic. The guitars and bass are crazy thick and punchy, and dan gives a great drum performance with tons of kick/snare blasting (just think Regurgitate's "Carnivorous Erection"). This was a great first release from this project, definitely something I can see any gorehound drooling over. Can't wait for more in the future.

Rating: 9/10

~VII

Chainsaw Squid/LxDxT - Split Review

We're barely dickhead deep into 2014, and we've already got a blazing hot fire split from the west coast to start this year off on a good note. Dropped right on the first day of this year actually, pretty nifty. Chainsaw Squid, one of my favorite bands of 2013 and one that I will continue to gush over till the
forseeable future, bring the pain yet again on their side. Five tracks, all fast, all heavy, no prisoners are taken in their grindcore rampage. Every track is a little piece of ignant blastcore perfection. This band makes every riff, and every spine-snapping break count, masters of their song craft, in my opinion. It's that chaotic, spur-or-the-moment sounding grind that I fell in love with from bands like Sidetracked or Dead Radical, or even Lack Of Interest. The usual choice samples are used, classic stuff. Definitely their best sounding recording too, and ends with a nice semi-MITB sounding groover. Love it all. LxDxT are a band that I've had my eye on for a minute, and I believe have unfortunately not had the chance to right about them. Bummer on my end to keep this band for any amount of people, because they rip hard. Three tracks from them, bringing that brutal, sharp, tight deathy grindviolence sound. But mixing it up with a plethera of slam dancing hardcore and fastcore influence. It's super brutal stuff, at times sounding almost exactly like fellow coaster's BrucexCampell, which is by all accounts a good thing. Not to mention, they sound fucking great on this split, super heavy and intense production. And nice one with the last track, guys. I really thought that was gonna be a live track for a while, then BAM, raging snare! Kick ass. Tapes are coming soon I believe.


Rating: 8.5/10

~VII

Faction Disaster/Dead Church - Split Review

A grisly split has risen from the epic grindblocks of the midwest. A double helping of two the the areas gruffest and burliest newcomers, both coming out Michigan actually. The midwest rust seems to be
relentless in it's output of good music, and here you'll get to see one of my favorites in top form. The mighty Faction Disaster, making their 7" debut, bring 3 tracks of brutal mincecore, the kind that should definitely appeal to people who like their pizza's with a hi-five (ha). By far their best recorded stuff so far, the guys make quite a soupy noise with a heaping helping of beefy, crushing, concrete smashing riffs. It's the kind of grind that I just love to hear, and bands like Faction Disaster know how to do it well. Brutal grind with a bunch of fun grooves and circle pit inducing blasts. On the flip we have Dead Church, a newish band that from day one has showcased nothing but quality grindage. I've been incredibly impressed by how much this band has been able to do in such a short time. As with their previous efforts, everything here is well recorded, raw, intense, and hardcore. Razor sharp grindcore with a bit of a Swede-grind influence, and a more "tough metallic hardcore" sounding vocalist, which gives them a bit of a different sound I suppose. I always picture a low-to-high screams vocalist for this kind of grind. Four tracks of excellent modern grindcore that showcase only the beginning of what this band has in store. Quality split, and all done DIY, released on DC's guitarists label, Mannequin Rein Recordings.

Rating: 8.5/10

~VII

Listen To Caged Grave!

I gotta thank my Aussie buddy Sean and his fantastic record nerd blog Skullfucked, a personally trusted source for awesome new bands from the country, for turning me on to these Melbourne rippers. Caged Grave is to my knowledge a fairly new band, and they're by far one of the best new Australian bands I've heard in a while. Their recently released demo tape/CD-r is an 8 track, barely 7 minute asteroid hit of blast beat ridden fast hardcore. Imagine Vaccine, but influenced a little more by sludgy hardcore and maybe throw a little Harm's Way in the mix. Fantastically recorded, perfectly compliments the intensity I'm sure the band was trying to go for. I've played it 4 times already just righting this post, replay worthy material and I can't wait to hear their next recordings. Check out the demo below, give them a like on facebook, and if you can spare the scratch, pick up one of their tapes. 

~VII

Sex Prisoner - "State Property" Review

Sex Prisoner are a band that know how do a comeback in the right way. Not that they were broken up or anything and pulled "comeback" like we usually know, but it had been a few years since there was
any noise from the Tucson, AZ crew. Their first 7" caused a bit of commotion among powerviolence and hardcore circles, and to this day it's still one of my favorite TLAL releases. Three years later, they're back and kicking 2013's ass all kinds of ways, dropping a fantastic 3-way split with ACxDC and Magnum Force, a track for a compilation 7" for Bad Teeth Recordings (alongside The Repos, To The Point and Curmudgeon, among others), and their own 7" EP, "State Property", released by the aforementioned Bad Teeth Recordings. I'm so happy to see these guys getting even more attention, and getting repped by more prominent figures in the powerviolence world (John Hoffman of Weekend Nachos fame is the owner and operator of BTR, for those unaware), because this record is incredible. Basically the only 7" I've been listening to for the past 2 weeks, I can't stop! They definitely continue down the same path they've always gone on "State Property", full on blasting meets completely ignant beat-down hardcore, but they just seem to get better and better every time. I'd definitely say that this is their best work yet. As songwriters, they've definitely stepped up; there is not a dull track out of the 10 on here, and you better believe they're packed with some of the toughest beatdown riffs I've heard all year. New guitarist, Matthew Underwood, brings a welcome mid-heavy metallic crunch to the band, evening out the sound a bit more and leaving the low end to the bass and the punishing drums. And the vocals...fuck, outstanding performances from the Kennedy brother. This record has me fighting ghosts and picking up change in my bedroom every day, and you're a damn fool if you don't buy this right now. And this just in, literally as I am about to post this, I find on their facebook page that they've been signed to a389 Records! Good going dudes!


Rating: 9.5/10

~VII

Backslider - "Consequences" Review

There are three bands that I consider to be the top tier in pushing the limits of fastcore; Sidetracked, who seem to have made it their mission to make the catchiest shortest songs they can, Hummingbird of Death, who can go from making a 20 song 5" of very apparent individual songs, to making a straight up sludge metal record, and Backslider, who are a band that shows incredible development with every release they put out. Last time we left this Philly duo, they were making some of the most structurally complex fastcore like it was nobody's business. Now on their new 10", " Consequences", the band has taken their own sound, and stirred up the pot more then ever with tons of different influences. While at the same time, taking a step back from going ballistic all the time, and stretching the song lengths out a bit more. Letting the songs have some room to develop, and for more riffs to stick around for a little while longer. They've still kept the fastcore fury though, no worries about that. The A-side is a devastating onslaught of sludge metal, death metal, crossover, and hardcore riffs, all together in one happy, and very inspired group of songs. The B-side is where the band really surprises though, with only two tracks on it of super sludgeviolence. It's pretty standard for any fast band to have a slow track on the end, but Backsliders newest editions to this formula sounds remarkably fresh. They almost sound like a different band entirely. They get to Noothgrush tempos on here sometimes, but they always keep it interesting with brief flashes of fastcore, and just by listening to how tight these two preform together. The guitars and drums are locked in so masterfully, completely complementing each other and hitting in unison in ways you don't hear many bands of this genre play. Definitely a highlight of the year for me so far. A contender for the top 20.

Rating: 9/10

~VII

3-way Hygiene Records Review: Gets Worse, Cheap Art, Chulo/Marion Barry

As you may have picked up from the Abuse. review I posted a couple weeks ago, I am in a full on Hygiene Records kick. The NC based label has put out not only some of the most solid grindcore and powerviolence records of the year, but a couple records I consider some of the years best! Here are my thoughts on a three of the labels freshest releases.

Gets Worse shouldn't be a very new name to a lot of you. After all the band burst into the undergrounds consciousness with a punishing debut 10" last year, and a crushing follow up EP a few months later.
Now these UK chuggers take another swing with their new 7", "Negative". A record that's as heavy as it is nice to look at (seriously, these records look f-a-b-ulous). The band may have less run time to work with, but they pack as much burly, raw beef riffs into it as they can. They always struck me as a really good mixture of Weekend Nachos (almost eerily similar) and The Afternoon Gentlemen. They definitely bring the blasts, but for the most part the songs are built around crushing slow chugs that turn your skull into a fine powder. Not really a style I listen to very often, but these guys are definitely masters of the heavy powerviolence art. Do not skip.

Rating: 7.5/10

I remember posting about Cheap Art a while ago as a Bandcamp Artist Of The Week, so I'm very happy to see that they got the record label treatment for their next EP. "Desocialized" is 10 minutes of pure fuck off fastcore, and the band sounds as fierce and and as loud as ever! Now backed by a new
singer (male/female tradeoff), the vocals are fantastically overblown and distorted, but that's about the only gruff thing about this recording. The band sounds much more full and bassier this time around, everything is just bigger and better, and fast as fuck. This band goes off the walls ballistic with their blast parts, like a freight train carrying nitroglycerin going mach 3. But that's not to say that this record isn't also full of tasty riffs and brutal slow passages. Class stuff, definitely one of the best fastcore records I've heard this year, and one that I play often.

Rating: 8.5/10


I'm real happy to see that this record finally came out. We here in the OG headquarters have been fans and supporters of Chulo for a long time, and they have been nothing but kind and supportive right back (their ex-vocalist Oscar even did the art for OG Vol. 2)! Plans for this split kick started over a year ago,
and finally, we have this excellent slab of wax available! Chulo are up first, pulling a Six Brew Bantha and starting off with a pulled back, rawwwww recording, before kicking into the actual well recorded part. The band has always sounded good, and this split is no exception. Solid, ripping grindviolence in the veins of Insect Warfare and Assück, with a little 90's Agathocles and maybe some Canadian fastcore a'la Obacha thrown in the mix for good measure. Lots of really good riffs, solid song writing, a great snare tone that's louder then anything else in the mix (I dig it). While I definitely say Chulo are the winners of this split, Marion Barry's side is a worthy companion. Never really dug this band to heavily, but for what they do, it's good. Noisy powerviolence stuff with lots of screeching power electronic samples and tons of movie clips that are actually pretty amusing ("I'm bout to go from ashy, to classy). They definitely lean on the goofier side of things, mostly in their lyrics, which is totally fine and dandy, but I've yet to be blown away by anything they do. Good split!!

Rating: 7/10

You can pick up all these records, and more, from Hygiene Records. Full support!!!

  

~VII

Water Torture/Corrupt Bastards - Split Review

I don't normally review re-issues, but there a couple factors that play into why I'm posting about this particular record. For one, because it's fucking Water Torture and Corrupt Bastards. And 2, because a thousand apologies to Mannequin Rein Productions owner/Dead Church guitarist/all around cool guy Maxx for not getting to this when it was first released as a tape. My bad duder. Anyways, for whatever reason any of you passed over this particular Water Torture release, you should definitely take a few steps back and check again because this one definitely goes down as one of my top splits from the band so far. Short short short split, previously released as a limited tape (as previously mentioned), now taking up one whole side of a 7" record. Water Torture bring 2 tracks to the table; one original and a cover of the classic Siege track, "Walls". The first track is pretty standard WT material, blasting powerviolence dual bass assaults with a pretty nice breakdown at the end, but the Siege cover is in my opinion the real gem. They have completely reworked the song into a two minute sludge piece with level 10 face to floor power. Totally crushing stuff, the boys continue to impress. On the flip side Up next we have Corrupt Bastards, the Texas two-piece who bring their own style of drum/bass powerviolence with 5 intense tracks. They keep it short and sweet on their end, lose focus for even a couple seconds and you'll miss a ton. The band maintains a more traditional fastcore/violence approach, like if Spazz or Lack of Interest scrapped their guitar player, and they perform the style very well. Brutal, gruff vocals and neck snapping start and stop song writing, held together by catchy as hell riffs and slamming drums. I loved every song on here, shame to see this band be so inactive. The tape version of this split is long sold out (sorry collectors), but you can find the sexy new vinyl version in tons of distros nowadays. Bass power 4 lyfe.

Rating: 9/10

~VII