HEADGORE: “A MEAL FIT FOR GOD”

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Dec 092022
 

(Christopher Luedtke reviews a new EP by the Vegas band HeadGore, which just dropped yesterday. Prepare to have your head gored.)

The state of music today is a frankly daunting and overwhelming landscape. In the last few years alone so many sounds have been converged, soldered, and brought together by odd arcane alchemy in very quick succession. And as this internet experiment slouches onward at lightspeed it becomes increasingly more impossible to hear it all at once, much less in individual doses. It is a thought that crosses my mind as I listen to Las Vegas, NV nocore unit HeadGore. There is a lot going on and going down, and their latest EP A MEAL FIT FOR GOD is a snapshot into the alchemy of everything.

HeadGore has been putting out bizarre iterations of grind, cybergrind, death metal, and electronic music since their 2019 split with Shitnoise Bastards. At once they are primarily a band that fits into the grind category. They do blasts, and the music is fast and noisy, but they very easily transition into the noisecore/noisegrind categories, but then will also flip a track into an electronic break or turn it into an uncomfortable, swampy melodic section. The nature of things seems to be not confining or boxing oneself in, hence nocore. And this latest release A MEAL FIT FOR GOD is the band at their most experimental yet. Continue reading »

VOLENTE BEACH: “SOUNDS OF THE OCEAN”

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Dec 022022
 

(Here we present Christopher Luedtke‘s review of a debut EP that’s being released today by the Austin, Texas band Volente Beach.)

As the world burns and breaks before our eyes, there’s a constant desire to want to run away from problems, especially when they’re out of our control. And while some of us simply can’t look away from an apocalyptic train wreck, there are plenty who will. Thankfully we have music, and when the human race isn’t horny fixated, we can fall into despair and our eyes connect with the issues once more. Which perpetuates the horny cycle, honestly. Today though, we’re on that path to the apocalypse with Sounds of the Ocean, the first release from Volente Beach.

The Texas four-piece Volente Beach are on a mission to keep us from getting too comfy in our ennui. Featuring members of Deaf Club, Glassing, Exhalants, Vampyre, and Honey & Salt, the project is an exercise in the dichotomy of serene beach sunsets and Skynet dystopias. The sound hovers in the hardcore/punk but has more than might be expected. Continue reading »

AN NCS DOUBLE PREMIERE: HOLY GRINDER — “TOXIC POSITIVITY” AND “EXCREMENT CAGE”

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Nov 042022
 

(We have two track premieres for you today from the Canadian band Holy Grinder, one of which comes with a video, prefaced with an introduction by Christopher Luedtke.)

Noise and grind are the perfect marriage. Say what you want of grind, but noise can get married to just about any genre, though when paired with grind it is as perfect as pizza. Holy Grinder has known this not-so-secret blend of gnarly herbs and jangly spices since before their inception. And they’re back to throw another molten slice into our faces and down our throats.

The Toronto, Ontario noisecore/noisegrinders in Holy Grinder have been dishing out the pain since 2016. They have done splits and collaborations with the likes of Christian Lovers, Kubine, Agothocles, Ancient Torture Techniques, and others. And have made it something of a point to both experiment with their sound and attempt to have it descend further into a near wall of noise. Here we have a dual offering from the chaotic void-dwellers, one furious noisegrind skull crusher, another longer, more noise addled dissertation. Continue reading »

AN NCS ALBUM PREMIERE: BIFID CORPSE — “REAL RAW DEATH”

 Album Reviews, Premieres  No Responses »
Sep 062022
 

(In this feature Chris Luedtke introduces our premiere of a new EP by Chicago’s Bifid Corpse, which is being released today via Bandcamp and features a logo by Warhead Art.)

Since 2016 Chicago two-piece Bifid Corpse have been punching out heavy, punishing tunes that largely walk a fine line between death metal and grindcore. Frantic blasts, brutally heavy guitar, gruff throat-ripping screams and growls. On top of that, sprinkle in a little bit of beatdown and the occasional doomy section and you have an idea of what you’re walking into. After a slew of shorter releases, a three-way split with Surfer James and Pythian, it looks like the band decided to go out and smelt a bigger hammer, namely their latest release Real Raw Death.

The title could not be more fitting. Bifid Corpse have cranked up the heaviness and recording quality without sacrificing any of the rawness. Real Raw Death is an immediate sledgehammer shot to the speakers. Opening with “Severed Skewed Consumed” the band lead in blasting and swinging. The heaviness and riding that grind/death wave sets up the album well. Continue reading »

ESCUELA GRIND: “MEMORY THEATER”

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Aug 312022
 

(Chris Luedtke is back at NCS with a review of the sophomore album by Mass.-based Escuela Grind, due for release on September 30 by MNRK Heavy.)

Escuela Grind are no stranger to the, well, grindcore genre. Though being a thoroughly grindcore-centric band, they exist in their own space that sounds like they are channeling Fuck The Facts but from peaks and valleys away. Maybe it is the way they carry their sound, maybe it is their aggressive touring style and their savvy ability to PR themselves. Likely, it is a combination of all (they have some killer merch).

Escuela Grind have been kicking up their discography, especially since the pandemic happened. During which Indoctrination dropped, as well as two EPs titled PPOOWWEERVVIIOOLLEENNCCE and GGRRIINNDCCOORREE. Now, the band’s sophomore LP Memory Theater is up to bat.

It is difficult to put into words when an album feels good but not great. Like a dull ache or even a soft blow. That’s how Indoctrination hit me. I queue it up on occasion and remember that it is a good slab of chaos but a return is not frequent. Maybe it needs to grow on me still. So the question becomes, can Memory Theater step up the game? The short answer is yes. Continue reading »

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