Disfear "Misanthropic Generation" CD
[Relapse]
What's the Tomas Lindberg count up to now? 1,000,005 bands or something? Not unlike Skitsystem, Disfear plays ripping hardcore/punk with a metallic edge, though honestly this isn't as metallic as I expected it to be. Some of Skitsystem's work is heavier and more metal tinged than this material, which is heavy as fuck, but definitely rooted in hardcore, with a Discharge meets Motörhead sort of flare to the leads and some of the more rocked out rhythms. Lindberg's vocals are those same unmistakable screams as always, of course. From a writing standpoint I like this stuff a lot, especially songs that mix up the tempos and get a little faster (such as the title track). Admittedly there's not quite enough variety here to keep the entire 38 minutes exciting, and I don't particularly think that some of these songs warrant running times of three-and-a-half to four minutes since the structures are simple and repetitive, but such issues are very minor. The recording is awesome. Definitely one the better records that Nasum's Mieszko Talarczyk has had a hand in. The drums are nice and natural, the bass is there, the distortion tones on both the guitars and bass are heavy but very textured, the mix is clear, the vocals are abrasive but not at all over the top... very nice. Sometimes Mieszko's work is hit or miss, so I was a little worried that it wouldn't sound this strong, but thankfully nothing bothers me. The layout's not bad at all. The coloring is dark and consistent, there are messy textures all over the place, the photos are well handled, the imagery works, the typefaces match up with everything else, etc. And I actually really like the fucking bitterness of the lyrics a lot: "...it's a race to the end this vicious circle of lies no, never again the sun it will greet my eyes trapped in a circle of lies my life seems to be my crime but with 26 years filled with nothing I think that I've served my time." This is good stuff. A tad boring due to its redundancy, but good nonetheless. I'd love to hear them employ a bit more variety in the future, but I can definitely live with this. I bet a lot of people will be a little taken aback by this at first. The rock 'n' roll influences, while definitely upped in the aggression department, surely took me by surprise. (7/10)
Running time - 38:00, Tracks: 12
[Notable tracks: Misanthropic Generation, 26 Years of Nothing, Desperation]
Relapse Records - http://www.relapse.com

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