Review: Kyklooppien Sukupuutto “s/t” CD

Here's some rugged, crusty hardcore/punk out of Finland with a good mix of hectic speeds and barked vocal shouts with slightly slower (never too slow) and quirkier riffing that gives them an unusual vibe. It's aggressive and sort of dark, but it's not too heavy, there's not really a pounding rhythm or any sort of truly metallic side to it. There's just a lot of distortion and a good amount of changeups to keep things interesting, and a lot of the chord progressions are pretty straightforward and have a fast early-80's US sort of style (check out "Et Ymm?rr? Mit? et Saa" especially). "Eristyksiss? Todellisuudesta" is one of the few tracks that has a tangible breakdown, but the drumming is sort of frantic and they put it at the end of the song, so they definitely mess with atypical conventions on occasion. "Itsekkyytt?/Itsesuojelua" throws around a little more subtle dissonance in the chords and basslines as well, which is a great touch. The recording takes a little getting used to because the drums sound a little weird and can overpower the mix at times, but other than that it sounds great. It's raw, intentionally, but that totally works on the guitars, bass, and vocals, which mesh together perfectly and all have their own identities. If they could get the drums to sound a little thicker and fall back in line they'd be set. The CD-R comes in a white paper sleeve secured inside of a professionally printed black and white booklet on matte paper, and inside is a xeroxed insert with English translations of the lyrics (which are all delivered in Finnish). The lyrics are cool too, carrying a socio-political message about the current state of the world with a pretty open approach that's not at all generic in my opinion, as they give it a personal spin and don't simply regurgitate what every other band is saying about these types of issues. This is a cool demo. I really like the fact that they're staying very true to the style of hardcore that seems to have largely inspired them, but there's just enough creativity both musically and lyrically to set them apart a bit and give them their own sort of approach. I'd say this is one to watch.