Instead, a lot of elements here are straight up distracting and many of the moments when the songs are meant to really take off are not executed as powerful as they should. I am never too much demanding when it comes to hardcore, in my world the more ignorantly in-your-face it is, that better. On the other hand, I like to feel real passion behind the band, and I know Mercyless are folks who are really pissed off with the world today and want to make a change. But it doesn’t come across in their music though. Listening to these songs makes me wanna bitch a little about my boring job at the office and idiots I have to work with, while hardcore should make me want to go on riot, rape and pillage spree.
On the positive side, the band sings in Spanish which is a definite winner in my book. I have always been a fan of bands singing in their native language and Mercyless definitely scores for that. Doing my research I have found out they’ve got some socio-political edge in their lyrics, not too much PC, but just commentary about what’s happening right now in Europe and rest of the world. And with unemployment among young people in Spain at around 50% right now, you bet they’re fucking angry.
Ok, I realized I have been too negative in this review and I don’t want you to get an impression that No Hay Paz is totally wasted effort. It has its moments, and if you are longing for that Hatebreed/Born From Pain sound that was such a hype couple of years ago, it might be worth to check it out. Still not as good as Reclaiming The Crown, but how many times have you listen to that album during all those years after it came out? Give that album a break and try something new.
Review by Dloogi
Cruzade Records, 2012
