Hard Core Roundup
By: Shaye Frenkel, Contributor
I find myself drawn to expressions of music that, whether consciously or not, seek to disrupt the complacency that has long lay dormant in alternative music. For me, hardcore punk is the perfect place to find that. A genre built on rejecting the music industry’s tendrils, and devoted to doing it all yourself.
We’re about two months into 2024 and it looks like it’s already off to a good start for fans of hardcore (and the multitude of closely associated microgenres). While bigger acts have been slowly announcing releases for the springtime, I’ve found myself enjoying some smaller debut EPs by newer acts that have dropped during February.
The first of these is a mysterious brutal death metal/hardcore EP called “PRELUDE TO EXTINCTION” by FINAL RESTING PLACE (Yes it’s all caps on purpose). Boasting a fake release date of April 19, 1995 (Fun, or not so fun fact: The day of the Oklahoma City Bombing), which makes the release feel like an elaborate bit meant to harken back to a simpler time in extreme music. The music found within is as nostalgic as it is forward thinking. FINAL RESTING PLACE manages to construct concise songs filled with catchy grooves, heart-stopping mosh parts, and disgusting vocals that are delightfully incomprehensible. The production is very muddy and lofi, which perhaps is at odds with modern sensibilities, but that’s kind of the point. I’ve gotta mention the snare tone too, which sounds like someone banging on a Pringles can (in a good way). We’ve seen a big surge in modern hardcore bands shamelessly stealing from old school death metal, so it’s nice to see that the favor is being reciprocated.
The EP dropped suddenly the week of February 23rd, with no formal announcement or confirmation of who was playing in the band. The only thing we do know is that it is being distributed by DAZE, a record label with some of the hottest names in hardcore punk on it. Hopefully they get on some show bills soon, because I can only imagine the sheer violence that’ll ensue. And with hardcore seemingly getting bigger by the day, even Taco Bell has tried to shoehorn bands like Turnstile and Militarie Gun into their ads, maybe brutal death metal will get its time in the sun soon.
Next up is a sophomore EP called Laugh To Myself by mathy hardcore act Suntouch House, hailing from Florida. Another nostalgic romp into sounds last seen in the 1990s, Suntouch House takes a more artsy approach in comparison to the sheer brutality of FINAL RESTING PLACE. They thrive on dissonant chords, off-kilter rhythms, and a general sense of unease. Despite being a relatively small band, I’ve been keeping a close eye on them because this is a type of style that I hold close to my heart; being from New Jersey, home of Deadguy and The Dillinger Escape Plan, where mathcore was indisputably invented, it’s always cool to see young people carrying on the torch.
Even though Laugh To Myself might not be too appealing to unfamiliar listeners, the band manages to make things pretty accessible. The repetitive nature of their weirdo riffs almost force them to get stuck in your brain. There’s also a pretty clear line to be drawn between popular noise rock adjacent artists like Daughters and Melvins to these nerdier bands playing their heart out in some basement or Veterans of Foreign Wars rental hall somewhere.
The last release I would like to talk about is a new band from a familiar face: “Crush Your Soul” by Crush Your Soul, featuring Jay Peta of Mindforce on vocals. When I first listened, this was another mysterious band to me. There was little to no information about who was in the band or even where they were from, but the second I heard the vocals, Jay’s unmistakable Hudson Valley accent shone through.
Crush Your Soul plays ignorant ass, mosh-mandated, leave your IQ at the door music. You’re not gonna find much melody here. The riffs have a healthy sprinkling of death metal, with power chord grooves and single note chromatic slayer rip-off riffs galore. Jay’s vocals give the project a more hardcore feel, with a raspy yell in contrast with the lower vocals typical in death metal. You can tell they’re heavily influenced by 90s hip hop titans like Wu-Tang Clan, because in between the onslaught of breakdowns are little skit interludes to keep you on your toes a little.
Inclusions like this really shows how much appreciation a lot of guys in hardcore have for hip hop. They share aesthetics (graffiti logos and baggy clothes and posturing about doing illegal things) and a street level, DIY mindset, and there’s been tons of overlap for years. Hell, even Ice-T (who used to be known for rapping and not just being on a cop show) has been in a metal/hardcore band for decades at this point. But back to Crush Your Soul, if you want something to jam while at the gym, or even if you just want a little pep boost to lift your mood (if getting yelled at about biting flows and the pitfalls of chasing the bag do that) then I highly recommend this EP.
It’s hard to pick a favorite among these three, but I’ll say that I’ve found myself coming back to Crush My Soul’s EP the most. It’s short and sweet, with enough breaks in the intensity to give you a breather. It also serves as a perfect example of what people look for in heavy hardcore nowadays: crushing riffs (pun partially intended) meant for live shows, brevity, and most of all, authenticity. People are tired of label-approved, big budget alternative music. They want something that feels real.
