Not Without Resistance "The Blood the Honor the Truth" CD
[Back ta Basics]
Brutal metallic hardcore from Philadelphia with vicious vocal shouts and plenty of chugging rhythms with a little bit of a New Jersey sort of kick that musically reminds me of Fury of Five or Second to None in some respects, though this isn't really toughguy stuff or anything. It's pretty straightforward, they mix up the tempos a little bit, but this is no nonsense metalcore the way it ought to be. There's no fucking tremolo picking death metal crap, no guitar harmonies or melodic Swedish shit, etc. At times the faster playing gets too sloppy (mainly in "Bitter Life Torn", which has the fastest riffs herein), but honestly I would rather hear these guys stick to the moderately paced material anyway, because songs like "Dedication" are far more memorable and in your face. The production could be better, could be worse. I like it for the most part though. The guitar tone is really good for the rhythms (though the lead lines are a little rugged), the drums are nice and dense, the vocals are well placed, etc. I have a hard time discerning the bass in there, but it's not exactly missed because there's a lot of thickness involved as it is. I can't say I enjoy the layout just because there's barely any information present. The same band photo appears twice, once with the lineup listed with it; the center spread has a small collage of live band shots and a thanks list; and the back of the booklet has a Back ta Basics catalog listed on it. The front cover illustration is okay, but I've seen the guy's work on several records and it honestly all sort of looks the same... it's just not really a style that I'm into. I would've rather seen the lyrics included as well, but what can you do? For the most part I like this disc a lot, but I think the band could really be a force if they focused a little bit more on streamlining their writing without being too redundant. Whenever they speed it up I start to get really bored, but pummeling tracks like "The Click is Thick" are total winners through and through. If this was an EP it would be awesome, but as a full-length it can wear thin after a few listens. I'll be curious to hear more in the future, though. (6/10)
Running time - 32:50, Tracks: 11
[Notable tracks: Dedication, The Click is Thick, New Beginning]
Not Without Resistance - http://www.notwithoutresistance.com

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