Damage Deposit "Straight to the Bottom" 7"
[Havoc]
More blistering hardcore/punk from this Minneapolis act, and I like this better than anything else they've done to date. The songs are far more powerful and memorable, making excellent use of high speed chord progressions with heavy breakdowns that hit like a ton of bricks with no damn metal, and vocals that rage right along with gruff shouts and a few varied attacks. Oftentimes the vocal patterns are really fast and have a crossover sort of flow, and I love that kind of thing. Musically "Get Outta Town" has some subtle dissonance going on, while "Government & Big Business Are Out to Screw the Little Guy" has a little melody and lots of energetic fast paced changes that totally shred, so there's just enough flare to keep it interesting through and through, while at its core it's basically slightly heavy hardcore the way it should be, based off of numerous 80's styled influences without coming off as heartless or generic in the least. Part of the reason it comes off as heavy is because the recording is super thick and a little muddy, but I don't mind it because the bass presence is critical here and the drums are also fully dense. A little more clarity would benefit them, but this sounds pretty damn good. The lyrics are fairly straightforward, often including varyingly brief song descriptions that go into more detail. I like the fact that the songs aren't about the usual topics, and even when they are it's from a different spin, such as the obstacles that go along with running a small business, the excessive numbers of animals killed each year by animal shelters in America, etc. The record is pressed on marbled gray vinyl and comes in a killer sleeve with a nice looking insert - all printed in black on metallic silver. There's a ton of artwork, some tiny photos, etc. Awesome. This is hands down some of the best hardcore I've heard all year, if the band continues at this pace I'll shit myself. Get this. (9/10)
Running time - 13:00 (approximately), Tracks: 8
[Notable tracks: 21+ = 0, Get Outta Town, Government & Big Business Are Out to Screw the Little Guy, Flesh Traffic]
Havoc Records - http://www.havocrex.com

This review has been displayed 1921 times.