I've been wanting to hear this for awhile but I forgot to pick it up after I first read about it. This band features the legendary Porcell on vocals, and he also writes the music, of course, so how could I not have at least some interest in hearing it!? Stylistically it's heavy hardcore that's a little more metallic than Judge was, but not overly metal by any means. It's not really fast and basic three chord hardcore in the vein of Youth of Today at all, but you can tell where the roots rest. Vocally things are generally just yelled with a little bit of scarce singing or speaking at times, but the vocals don't sound like Project X or anything like that, they're usually more aggressive and pissed off. "One Day" is a bit more diverse rhythmically and also brings in some subtle melody along with some darker riffing, making it the real standout for me, but the cool thing is that none of the songs sound identical to one another. Appropriately enough the EP closes with a cover of the Blitz track "Never Surrender". Now, I really like these songs, and this EP was recorded at Monster Island Studios in DC with Ken Olden... but holy crap does this thing sound pretty terrible! The vocals actually sound really good to me, and the drums are alright, but I can't make out an ounce of bass, and the guitar tone is fucking atrocious! It's really raw and has a digital sort of bite to the distortion, sounding pretty much totally like a guitar running through a distortion pedal and then right into a computer or other recording unit. The guitars are therefore also rather overpowering at times, so it really lacks the natural warmth and balance that the songs deserve. I really can't understand how a recording done at a proper studio could come out like this, though. It's a damn shame... because this is strong material. The layout is largely black with some red and a few simple icons or photos. The lyrics are rather succinct and generally deal with sticking it out and getting through tough times and stuff like that. There's a brief video on the CD-Rom portion of the disc that contains around three minutes or so of interview footage with Porcell talking about how the band came together and his ideas and intentions with the band, etc. Like I said, I enjoy this, I think the songs are better than the sound designates, so... I don't know what the band is up to now, if anything, but I hope they continue, in which case I assume the sound quality will improve. But that guitar tone is a big hindrance in the listening experience here.
[Fight Fire With Fire]
Running time - 15:14, Tracks: 5
[Notable tracks: Indestructible, One Day]
Fight Fire With Fire Records - http://www.fightfirehq.com
