(We present Christopher Luedtke‘s review of a new release from the Canadian noise grinders Holy Grinder, which is set for release tomorrow.)
The fourth full-length from Toronto, Ontario’s Holy Grinder is an ugly, mangled, heavy, spattering of noise, grind, sludge, and chaos packed into thirteen minutes. Though one lucky person is gonna get all that on cassette in a vat of piss. See their Instagram for further details, but that’s beside the point for the rest of us.
Holy Grinder has been at it for the better part of eight years and has a fair few releases under their belts since their 2016 inception. They have done splits with the likes of Christian Lovers, Agathocles, Sete Star Sept, Fetus Deletus, and more in addition to singles. Now almost four years to the day after Divine Extinction, the band is unleashing their latest full-length, 10 Desecrations.
Holy Grinder began as noisegrinders with an emphasis on the noisier aspects but with a flair for powerviolence or sludge at times. It is reminiscent of projects like Man Is The Bastard but with denser blasts. And that’s something that has carried through, though the band has not been afraid to experiment and has taken their noise level to include things like brass and power tools.
With this, 10 Desecrations instantly feels nostalgic but fresh. The production has sharpened since the band started working with Topon Das of Fuck The Facts and this is no different. Beginning with “Let’s Die” the album comes in on a slow sludgy bass line that carries the song up until its final seconds are spent blasting and kicking us into gear for the rest of the record.
Immediately the album becomes more grisly. The vocals are vomited, the bass is still thick as crude oil, and the noise hovers somewhere between being a haze and harsh. The heaviness is where the album largely sits with thundering bass and drums. The noise often plays off its surroundings sometimes as ambience, sometimes as a way of making everything harsher.
But then there are tracks like “Excrement Cage.” A song that is heavy on brass and light on most other things until about halfway in and the song descends into a full fury of blasting that starts to slow down and then speeds up with the full force of feedback and noise kicking in. And not a second after it finishes “Transphobe Extermination” kicks in for one of the purest grindiest tracks on the album. It is a strong contrast of sounds on this album, between the noisy, the heavy, and the blasts.
Holy Grinder also dips into sludgy sounds here too, not just when it comes to bass lines. The title track “10 Desecrations” is a noisy sludge song. One of the shorter ones you will ever hear. Meanwhile, Holy Grinder isn’t afraid to tap into some hardcore/punk/powerviolence vibes as well. “Total Disgust” is a circle pit of fury that would get a punk show moving, though its ending would get some to come out swinging. The final track, “Holy Grinder 2”, is an exercise in chaos, blasts, and extremity. It starts unassuming and then goes for it by just going into a blast, and then going into a faster blast, like something off the final Insect Warfare record.
Noisegrinders are already gonna be into this, so don’t sleep, check it out ASAP. Will it bring in those from the outside? Perhaps. Those who are newer to the genre or already enjoy grindcore and powerviolence could find an entry point here if they haven’t heard Holy Grinder already. It is a crude, heavy, disgusting, noisy slice of noisegrind. Albeit it is short but that’s less than shocking for the genre.
If you like heavy, noisy, fast stuff then look no further, 10 Desecrations doesn’t disappoint. It’s Holy Grinder doing what they do best: abrasive, ugly, noisy, chaotic, vomitous grind.
10 Desecrations drops on May 10 via Baby Chico Records.
Holy Grinder Socials:
https://holygrinder.bandcamp.com/music
http://www.facebook.com/holygrinder
http://www.instagram.com/holy.grinder
https://orbtapes.bandcamp.com/album/2016-2021-discography
https://holy-grinder-official-store.creator-spring.com/
Baby Chico Records socials
https://babychicorecords.bandcamp.com/
https://www.instagram.com/babychico_records/
https://babychicorecords.bigcartel.com/