Here's the debut full-length from this Brazilian band, who on this outing have increased the intensity of their approach to a heavier and much more grindcore oriented sound, whereas some of their earlier work was more of a fast hardcore/crossover thrash kind of thing.? Those influences are definitely still at work, but for the most part this material is darker and more in your face, switching off the vocals from sneering screams to a variety of yells and shouts, while the music ranges from blasting and nearly chaotic grindcore to slightly slower dissonant breaks and metal riffs or the crossover hardcore/thrash of their earlier recordings.? They blaze right through one song after another and the lyrics are in Portuguese so it can be really hard to figure out which song is which, but on occasion some of the distorted bass breaks or sinister midpaced riffing that comes into play are definitely killer.? There's absolutely a ton more variety here than what I heard in some of their past work, and I'd definitely state that some of the subtly melodic and dissonant influences at work in a few of these tracks are a great complement to the raging grindcore fury heard elsewhere.? On occasion you could argue that there are some crust punk influences going on as well, with one or two total 80's thrash metal riffs popping up here and there.? But either way, they're tearing through a lot of different sounds in a way that seems pretty cohesive, and there's a strong sense of heaviness too.? The recording's not bad at all for this style.? It's got just the right amount of ruggedness but sounds fairly tight and heavy, using a clear mix that works well during the blasting speeds.? The guitars and bass can fall behind the vocals and drums during some of these moments, but it never really becomes a bother or sounds out of place, so I think they've done well in that regard.? The record is pressed on clear red vinyl and comes in a red and black sleeve with high contrast artwork and a two-sided black and white insert with all of the lyrics.? One side of the insert has the lyrics in their native Portuguese, while the other offers English translations.? Despite the harsh and aggressive nature of the music the lyrics have a surprising amount of humor involved.? Sure, there are some tracks about socio-political issues such as propaganda and consumerism, and a few tracks attack religion, but even these songs tend to have some sarcasm involved, and there are just as many others attacking overly idealistic hardcore/punk "revolutionaries" or just offering a generally pessimistic and self-deprecating sense of humor.? You can pick up on that attitude in the music too, notably in the sneering vocal screams (which are a little higher-pitched than most and have a great bitter edge).? Very nice work on this one.? As I said, it's kind of hard to figure out which song is which since they never let up in between tracks, but there are some awesome moments on this thing.? Keep an eye on these guys in the future, because this LP definitely marks a more focused direction for the band.
[Terr?tten]
Running time - 24:00 (approximately), Tracks: 24
[Notable tracks: Teoria De C? ? Rola, Opera??o Torquemada, Na??o Das Ovelhas, Meia Noite Na Estrada, and several others...]
Terr?tten Records - http://www.terrotten.com
