 |
| Horns up |
New Horizons
Lust For Youth/Croatian Amor – All Worlds
Six years on since their solid self-titled record, Lust For Youth are back. Roping in old friend and collaborator Croation Amor has made them up their game as they blend dubstep, 80’s pop, chillwave and dream pop in glorious fashion. ‘Passerine’ should be the blissed-out summer tune of 2025 and ‘Fleece’ will soundtrack the shift from summer to autumn.
The album can be streamed and purchased here.
Combust – Belly of the Beast
NYHC hasn’t sounded this metallic since ‘Best Wishes’ by the Cro-Mags. Filled with gang vocals, breakdowns, divebomb solos and oozing menace, this is a stellar release. 12 songs filled with anger and intensity that runs to 30 minutes with ‘Swallowing Swords’ and ‘Truth Hurts’ being particular highlights.
The album can be streamed and purchased here.
Zero Again – Ever Changing is the Art of Death
Blending d-beats, gnarly UK82 style vocals, angular riffing and muscular bass runs, this second album from the UKHC stalwarts is another assault on the senses that manages to showcase influences from the likes of Voivod, Broken Bones and Killing Joke, with ‘Without Consequence’ being the perfect example of how these styles coalesce into something extraordinary.
The album can be streamed and purchased here.
Golden Oldies
Napalm Death – Apex Predator…Easy Meat
Common perception is that N.D lost the plot after ‘Utopia Banished’ was greeted with a lukewarm reception. But the fact is that they’ve had an incredible run from 2000 onwards and ‘Apex…’ fits perfectly in this run. Like 2012’s ‘Utilitarian’, it’s a simple case of the band still being able to write utterly amazing songs that knocks the stuffing out of the listener but tweaking the formula ever so slightly just to give it a different feel.
Art Of Burning Water - Living is for Giving, Dying is for Getting
They were never given a great amount of attention, despite the quality of their releases and the barrage of noise that they bombarded you with at their gigs. But songs like ‘You Get What You’re Given’ mixes the epic feel of Amebix and the disgust of hardcore in a blender and comes out with this gem. The transition from epic riffing into headbanging doom towards the end is sublime. And then goes back into hardcore. Not big, not clever, but exhilarating.
On the whole, this is a solid effort with some seriously killer moments in it. The band clearly understand the essence of post punk and aren’t afraid to bring in elements of industrial and EBM into the mix with ‘High Rise’ being the daddy of the album: a scuzzy bass riff, drilling noises and a mixture of vocals ranging from the harsh to the spiritual. This song really sets the scene perfectly and works when reading early J.G Ballard.
Barge – S/T
From Richmond, Virginia, Barge offered the listener a blend of hardcore and powerviolence that blasts along with utter abandon and also with utter precision. A very tricky balancing act, but one that is pulled off with aplomb. Although now disbanded due to allegations against the singer, this LP is packed with passion, killer song writing and fury on display which still knocks the listener for six.
⏩ Christopher Owens was a reviewer for Metal Ireland and finds time to study the history and inherent contradictions of Ireland. He is currently the TPQ Friday columnist.
No comments