Raw Justice - Artificial Peace

Raw Justice - Artificial Peace (Straight & Alert) - The first track kicks in and once again RJ delivers a true headnodder! I fucking love Pagan Stomp, the perfect built up for the rest of the record. Useful Pride sounds sick, the track is catchy and well thought without losing any rawness. Vocals come through with brute force spitting honest, pissed of lyrics about real life topics. Mad At This World is probably my fav track here, fast part makes me want to break faces and the breakdown definitely delivers. "There's no turning point. I'm at war with the world. I'm mad at the world!!!" Another stand out is Loud and Proud which is the most punk rock track on the record. All in all, it’s really fast, dirty and straight forward hardcore and if you’re not into that style you might feel tired after a while , but for everyone into bands like SSD, Wrecking Crew or early Cro-Mags there's enough good stuff on the ep to keep you happy.

Review: Thug X Life - Jungle Law

Thug X Life - Jungle Law (Refuse Records) - The record is four cuts of fast and pissed off hardcore with shouted, rough vocals and breakneck tempos. Despite band’s name there’s no gangsta posing on here, instead you get honest and rather positive lyrics with straight edge message and real life topics. The production is raw, but this is only good for this type of music. The band slows down from time to time and these breakdowns are always on point. Fans of old American hardcore should take notice. If you like when bands don’t waste time on bullshit but go right for the throat from the very first note, this shit is for you. Can’t say it’s something I am personally too crazy about, but I do like to play this record now and then. Jungle Law was put out by Refuse Records and they did great job with package and everything.

Review: Indication - XI

Indication - XI (Last Warning Records) - Another band from Poland that is killing it! Indication draws heavily from classic 90s Clevo sound like Integrity or In Cold Blood, but with a modern sensibility. There’s a run of four tracks on here but the short ep covers everything you’d expect from that type of hardcore. Wide range of tempos, sick riffs and evil vibe has the band ready to crush everything in their way. The vocals get the job done with harsh and powerful delivery, nothing too original, but they fit perfectly with the music.

Despite the heaviness, Indication is straight up raw hardcore. It sounds genuine, like these boys has been living in the darkest corners of reality, dealing with the evils of this world since day one. It’s kind of refreshing when you consider most of Clevo wannabe bands sound like goofy suburban kids jerking off to Manson posters. What needs to be said that like any other solid hardcore band, Indication is at its best when enjoyed live. I’ve seen them play couple times and they never disappoint.

Review: All For Nothing - What Lies Within Us

All For Nothing - What Lies Within Us (GSR) - If you follow what’s happening in the European core scene you must be familiar with this band. They’ve been going strong for some time already and put in some real hard work and dedication. It all resulted in couple of tours and albums under their belt already. I have respect for bands that keep it real like that.

Stylistically ‘What Lies Within Us’ has all the markings of a NYHC-styled hardcore. It has its qualities, and there are moments when the band shines. The guitar work is slick and the dance parts are intense, but some tracks just feel like a the band keeps repeating the same thing time after time. I guess the sooner you realize that generally cliches play big part of hardcore the sooner you will start to enjoy this slice of European core. What drags it down a bit to me are the vocals, but it’s just my personal taste and it got nothing to do that it’s a girl singing.

On the other hand, the record has some heartfelt hard-knock life lyrics that I think many kids will find very inspiring. Musically, Hold Fast is definitely a highlight, that songs is too powerful! All in all, this is a solid record if you’re into bands like No Turning Back or Madball.

Review: King Nine - Scared To Dead [Ratel]

This shit is made so you get inspiration to harden the fuck up. This is heavy metallic East Coast hardcore done just like it was meant to be done from the start. All the tracks on this one feature a gritty heavy sound, with stomping grooves and aggressive (and pretty skilled) riffing topped off with seriously harsh vocals. There are no funny-style reaches on the record, no clean vocals, melodic riffs or any of this shit. Being from NYC you can tell these dudes soaked up One Second Thought, Fury Of V and Bulldoze. You can tell where band’s influences are, but King Nine is bringing it to the forefront with their own unique style and personality.

If you need something to put you on the champion mindset, this is it. Scared is a blistering listen which easily muscles its way into the upper echelon of hardcore heavyweight league. Listening to this makes me think about crazy shit like gorillas beating each other to bloody mess over who’s the baddest mother fucker in the jungle! Nasty stuff!

If you're dead broke and can afford to buy just one album this year, make it this one. Or steal it if you really have it, I don't care, just get it! There's something in that East Coast water that breeds these animals!

Review: Reality Returns - Reality Returns 7"

Reality Returns - Reality Returns (Take It Back Records) - Reality Returns was formed by dudes from Teamkiller and Coldburn who wanted to play more traditional, in your face brand of hardcore. Don’t expect the band to break new grounds on this record, but they do a good job of recreating the sound of classic Merauder, Madball or Killing Time tunes.

The group comes correct with their fresh yet aggressive style and the short ep overflows with that distinct style of 90’s heavy hardcore. The record kicks off with a groove-ridden intro with the whole crew shouting Reality Returns on repeat, classy! What follows next is 3 tracks of fast, hard-hitting hardcore that have been done many times before, but who cares when it sounds so good! They throw in some heavier parts at times too, but it never goes too much into metal direction which is always cool in my book. Check out this well crafted and catchy.ep whenever you have a chance.

Overreact - Self Titled (Knives Out Recs)

The debut ep from France’s Overreact does not disappoint. If bands like Integrity, Ringworm, Vitality or Kickback are your shit, this ep will be a dope front-to-back listen as it showcases the band just wrecking shit through 4 tracks with a real nice vibe on the 90’ evil and grimey metalcore tip. Some real hard shit on this one. Those dudes ain’t ashamed to admit they’re heavily influenced by old school metalcore sound which seems to be a kind of hype in some circles. But make no mistake, this ep hits so many right points that it’s clear they’re not some new jacks jumping on bandwagon but real dudes with sincere love for the art of hardcore.

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Unite For Relief comp

I love it when hardcore community gets together for a good cause. Like this comp, which is a result of couple dudes from Germany, US and Japan teaming up to make it happen - and all the profits go to help people in Japan who still struggle to get their lives together after the tragic tsunami in 2011. The tracklist is insane and includes everything that’s cool about hardcore - from classics like Next Step Up or Darkside NYC to newer bands like Look My Way, Ballistic or For The Glory. You also get big names like Madball, Wisdom In Chains or Trapped Under Ice in the mix as well.

2 cds, 35 tracks - I know the main goal is to raise money for the needing, but if you choose to buy this cd you’ll get shitload of good hardcore to listen in your car or gym or wherever you like it. The selection of the songs is dope, there are absolutely no fillers and all the tracks are heavy as hell. That's not surprising considering the opening track is Bringing Back The Glory by Next Step Up. It's a track everyone loves and are familiar with, but it kind of embodies the spirit of integrity and solidarity this record carries. It's impossible to pick a fav track here, but I advise you to check out Methods Of Groove by Embraced By Hatred. You can't top the original, but this version still is fire!

Furious Records released the comp in Asia in 2012 and Filled With Hate Records released it in Europe/US in 2013. There are some copies left and they need to go! You can order your copy here. Europe, US - step up!

Review: Scarred Mind - Heavy Mental

Scarred Mind - Heavy Mental (Worship Records, 2012) - Damn, this ep is soooo good! Scarred Mind delivers some dope tracks on their debut 7” ep Heavy Mental. Crunchy and sharp hardcore with a slight metallic sound that moves forward while managing to stay true to its roots. They combine elements from different eras and styles hardcore, but most of all it’s about that rugged and raw style everyone loves.

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Review: Hammerfist - Zero Stone

Hammerfist - Zero Stone (Rucktion) - Fuck, this shit is heavy! Not much have changed compared to band’s previous albums but if it ain’t broken, don’t fix it. After first listen I knew I got what I expected from this album - the vocals are maniac and the riffs are massive. Much of the album has a strong old-styled metallic hardcore vibe to it that I'm really feelin. It’s kind of stuff you know from Merauder or Hatebreed albums, and it’s done so right. For more traditional, faster hardcore parts check out tracks like Carry The Weight, while Skin Change and Illusio deliver heavy breaks that weight tons.

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