Despise You “West Side Horizons” CD

I don't know much about defunct California bashers Despise You, and I don't even remember exactly when it was that Pessimiser Records released the "West Side Horizons" collection CD, but all of these songs were recorded between 1994—1996. No doubt one of the reasons I was never too up on my Despise You background info is that the lineup was entirely credited to the pseudonyms of Jose Morales (guitar/vocals), Leticia Perez (bass/vocals), Frank Acevez (drums/vocals), and Alex Morales (vocals/guitar). Beyond that, the group used lots of old school Venice looking graffiti lettering and badass handmade t-shirts with Suicidal Tendencies styled artwork to create elements of their visual aesthetic—all of which was a Brujeria-esque ruse, complete with false tales of the band's links to gangs and criminal activity. The membership of Despise You was actually made up of individuals who had been involved with Excruciating Terror, 16, Stapled Shut, and Pessimiser Records, among other outlets; and despite the existence of a few show flyers, the band apparently never performed live during their brief stint.

This disc is an almost complete discography (some cover songs were recorded and never released, granted covers from Possessed, D.R.I., Circle Jerks, and Beowülf do appear herein, I'm not sure if any other comp tracks or whatnot are missing) compiling 16 previously unreleased tracks; 10 compilation songs; the "PCP Scapegoat" 7"; and split 7"s with Stapled Shut, Suppression, and Crom. The grand total is a whopping 62 tracks in less than 45 minutes—meaning that you're in for a hell of a lot of short bursts that almost always clock in at less than a minute apiece.

Despise You is one of those few simply awesome bands that I honestly never really knew how to "categorize" (for lack of a better term). Is it hardcore? Absolutely. Is it grind? Sometimes, sort of. Is it power violence? I think so, in that it blends intense blasts of raging speed with sludgy breaks and an overall sense of complete and total fury. But I never really cared for the term "power violence", nor the majority of the bands that were associated with it beyond its initial wave. Despise You, however, fit that bill in the best possible way, managing to counter frantic speeds and ripping vocal arrangements with slow, dingy dissonance and a songwriting approach that actually feels energetic and memorable—as it should, it's just not something that many bands of this ilk have ever been able to achieve. I don't listen to this CD nearly as often as I should. Damn this shit is good. Fucking classic.

Despise You "Lagrimas"
Despise You "No More... Feelings"
Despise You "Guilty View"
Despise You "Born in The Dirt—Raised in a Hole"
Despise You "9-13-91"

"West Side Horizons" is technically out of print, but you can still find it both new and used through various sources. Oh, and it's, uhhh... also available on... ummm, iTunes... if you're a big dork that prefers to purchase your music digitally rather than the "old fashioned" way (uuuggghhh). Just buy this shit one way or another and destroy, okay?

Amazon.com
Half.com