Time for a band from my homeland scene, Croatia to grace the pages of this zine. Sukob are from Zagreb, capitol of Croatia and they are relatively new band, this being their first release. But members of Sukob are veterans of this scene with decades of playing in bands such as Verbalni Delikt, AK-47, Ljubiša Samardžić….also some of the band members have been anarcho activists and releasing diy tapes, cd-s and vinyls for decades now. So, when I heard about this band, I was eager to hear their songs when they recorded something and here it is. 10 songs of hardcore punk with Croatian language screamed from the top of the lungs of singer Fistra. Music is mid tempo to d beat Scandinavian influenced old school hardcore punk with dark overtones and almost apocalyptic sounding atmosphere because situation in the world is nothing to be happy for. This band reminds us that punk is more than fun, beers, riding unicorns and partying all day long. Songs are short and to the point and this whole e.p. is around a bit more than 15 minutes long. Songs are a bit similar to one another for my taste, but no matter this is healthy dose of hardcore punk telling us the current state of things here in our country and in the world. Go check it out!
Rise Against decided to surprise us with their brand new e.p. containing songs that were actually recorded in the same session as previous full length album Nowhere Generation, So, these five songs continue where the last album stopped, delivering blistering melodic hardcore with politically charged lyrics that are somehow also personal and talking to each and every one of us. Last Man Standing and This Time Is Personal are somehow my personal favorites with Tim´s vocals being trademark that you recognize anytime you awake in the middle of the night. This band just can´t disappoint with their music. Unfortunately I have never witnessed them deliver their mighty set live, but I plan to correct that mistake one day. Great surprise by great band.
Sweden has always been great fertile ground for awesome bands and Tear Them Down are from Gothenburg and this is their second full length album. This band has been in the scene since 2010 and did many European tours and also went to Japan. This one features 13 songs of hardcore punk mayhem. It is a nice old school hardcore punk with 80ies influences, fast and strong to make your fist pump in the air with joy and energy in your heart. But, there are also some I would say garage punk, melodic skatepunk and more skatecore influences. My personal favorites are anthems like Sacrifice and also Total Control which I am sure are live favorites to sing along, stage dive and bring smile to your face. Vocals are harsh, shouted in hardcore way, but also transform to more melodic singing and it works perfectly along with harsh and singalong backing vocals. Some of the songs from this album like As We Go Down I listened to over and over again to check out how great they are. Fantastic hardcore album!
KRAYKULLA-WEBZINE 