Hellshock "s/t" 7"
[Whisper in Darkness]
I've been wanting to check this band out for a long time, and I finally picked up this 7" since I can't find their full-length on CD anywhere. Chalk up another winner from Portland, because this kicks ass. Current and/or ex-members of a shitload of other solid bands (I don't know what's accurate but I've seen mentions of Atrocious Madness, Warcry, From Ashes Rise, and Remains of the Day, if not others) plowing through two tracks of chugging metallic hardcore/punk that often gets tagged as an early UK crust style, also compared to early work from Peaceville Records to boot. And I'd basically agree with that. Think thick and crisp midpaced rhythms with pounding basslines and percussion, fairly repetitious song structures, and vocal tradeoffs between barked growls and shouts. There are a few little lead lines here and there bringing in more of the punk tinges, but this is pretty heavily based around the metal end of the stick... in the best way possible. "Last Sunset" even opens with an excellent clean passage that uses light effects and comes across as far darker - crossing that dirge-y sort of Amebix style with something that could just as soon be correlated with raw mid- to late-80's thrash metal - which is perfect because that's basically what the track explodes into afterwards! A little faster with more of a driving tempo and tons of crunchy thrash power chord riffs. Awesome. The recording is tight as well, with a little bit of ruggedness to firmly tie it to some of its influences, but definitely clear and powerful with a balanced mix. So I have no real complaints. The packaging is all done in black and white with basic text, and of course the imagery is also very much in line with the many bands and styles from which they're drawing inspiration. Hey, if it ain't broke, don't fix it, right? The lyrics deal with expected subject matter such as war and apocalyptic visions of the world's untimely demise, in fine form: "Dreamscape of a holocaust, followed where no one else would tread, Exodus to illusion, we're all buried where you've led..." Good stuff. The EP's too damn short and I'd like to hear more to get a real feel for where they can take this stuff, but this is a keeper for sure. I've gotta track down that full-length now. (7/10)
Running time - 9:00 (approximately), Tracks: 2
[Notable tracks: both are great but "Last Sunset" stands slightly above]
Whisper in Darkness Label, distributed by Hardcore Holocaust - http://www.hardcoreholocaust.com

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