Awesome. This is a free CD-R given to friends of this semi infamous Florida hardcore band that contains every song they ever recorded prior to their most recent "Total War" full-length - making all of these tracks at least 10 years old, dating back to 1992's "Welcome to Kali Yuga" demo. Also included is the "Life in Sodom" demo (1993), the split 7" with Subliminal Criminal, and the "Born With the Fear of Dreaming" LP (1994). The band's style is fairly linear metallic hardcore with chunky chord progressions, raspy vocals that aren't sung but aren't quite shouted, etc. It's not that uncommon compared to a lot of what was going on in that day and age, at least not musically (the subject matter of the songs was definitely left of center), but it's damn good, and holds up well over time. In fact, I'm rather surprised that these guys didn't get a little more exposure in the mid-90's, because this is better than a lot of comparable bands of that period. "Honor Among Thieves" is slightly faster and more straightforward, still heavy, but definitely more in the hardcore vein; "Life in Sodom" kicks out lots of harmonics and more energetic picking patterns, as well as slightly gruffer vocals with a really interesting hint of melody; and "Seeing Things" uses some slower and almost sludgy riffs, definitely more of a rhythmic track with lots of tempo changes and some weird dissonant chords mixed in. It's a consistent set of tracks, but not one-sided, that's certain. There are quite a few repeat tracks here (the "Born With the Fear of Dreaming" LP is basically re-recorded versions of demo tracks with a couple of new songs), but I'm not really bothered by that because everything sounds really good. Hell, even the 1992 demo sounds pretty god damn good for its age. All of the tones sound about right as far as this genre 10+ years ago, the mixes are even, etc. I wouldn't change anything per se. I wish this thing was mastered because all of the output levels are really quiet and sort of get slightly louder as the material gets newer, but this is a self-released freebie so I can totally understand it for what it is. The disc comes in a makeshift sleeve xeroxed on red paper and stapled together, with a few band photos, a detailed tracklist, etc. Inside is a quick xeroxed insert with the lyrics to a handful of the songs. Most of the songs seem to be pretty bitter and personal, but it is mentioned that a few tracks whose lyrics do not appear deal with topics like the 1992 riots in Los Angeles and the A.I.D.S. epidemic, so there's a lot of different stuff going on in here thematically. I'll tell you, I'd love to see this thing get a proper release with a good mastering job to increase and even out the output levels, a solid layout with some old photos, liner notes, the lyrics, etc. I figure the odds of that happening are slim, so this is still an awesome document of the band's history, but all the same... far worse bands have been granted suitable discographies, so I'd like to see these guys get what they deserve with a shot at representing these songs in the best manner possible. If you're interested in hearing this stuff I imagine the band would send you one should you offer up a few bucks to cover materials and postage. I'm into it. Good stuff.
[Feast of Hate and Fear]
Running time - 59:14, Tracks: 18
[Notable tracks: Honor Among Thieves, Life in Sodom, Santo Vici Secto, Love Black and Blue]
Feast of Hate and Fear - http://www.feastofhateandfear.com
