The teaser trailer advertising Bitter End’s forthcoming CD Guilty As Charged got my adrenaline pumping with its promise of metallic NYHC-styled aggression. Unfortunately, I was a little glum that I’d have to wait until August 3 until the disc released on Deathwish–or so I thought. Apparently, the label has decided to try a clever, though certainly not unprecedented strategy to entice people to pick this one up. If you pre-order the CD or vinyl editions now, you get the digital files for the entire album right now. Not one mere track, not a bonus track–the full LP as MP3s. Deathwish have also gone and done this for a couple other artists simultaneously, namely poppy post-hardcore act End Of A Year (bleh) and mysterious powerviolence supergroup United Nations (yay).
Initially, it wasn’t all that clear why Unsane chose to play a one-off show this past Friday in Brooklyn. They had no new album to promote, nor any major news to announce, yet the devoted crowd at a sold-out Union Pool seemed perfectly content when frontman Chris Spencer suggested that they were just there to “hang out.” Fortunately, that meant a lengthy set from the iconic New York noise rockers stuffed with classics as well as more recent work. Kicking off with “Against The Grain,” a vicious track off 2007′s underrated Visqueen, the essential trio of drummer Vinnie Signorelli, bassist Dave Curran, and guitarist Spencer set a bizarre mood for the remainder of the night. During songs like “Scrape” and “Body Bomb,” Unsane were unhinged and bestial. Yet between tracks the guys acted playful and lighthearted, with Signorelli showing off rhythmically while Curran and Spencer shared some borderline bromantic moments. This dichotomy of catharsis and camaraderie spread quickly to the audience, of which I was an active participant at the front of the stage. Though most of the between-song banter was friendly, Spencer experienced a significant mood shift as he introduced “Only Pain” which he described as some sort of love song. His lyrics steeped in agony, Unsane’s founder roared his heart out on the gut-wrenching chorus, adding new dimensions to an already solid track. The band closed with a long slogging noise jam version of “Get Off My Back” (off 1995′s essential Scattered, Smothered & Covered), which astounded with its primitive wall of sound approach to devastation.
Friday, February 12th, 2010 at 1:12pm by Gary Suarez
I don’t know what we did to deserve this, but New York noise rock legends Unsane have given us the best Valentine’s Day gift of all: an intimate one-off concert at Union Pool in Brooklyn tonight. The band’s first local show in two years, the bill also features the incredible Made Out Of Babies, savage hardcore supergroup United Nations (dropping a new 7″ on Deathwish this year), and some other band called Dark Vibe that doesn’t have any music on their Facebook page (tsk tsk). The super-low-budget video above is for “Against The Grain,” one of the many brutal tracks off 2007′s devastatingly violent Visqueen, and after over two decades of being together it’s clear that Unsane haven’t lost their edge.
If for some reason you didn’t buy advance tickets, I strongly recommend getting your pimply ass there at 8pm in the hopes that you can gain entry at the door. This venue is fucking tiny (it used to be a pool supply store) and the building will likely collapse by the end of the night thanks to the crushing nature of the lineup.
-GS
[Gary Suarez usually manages the consistently off-topic No Yoko No. He recently quit Twitter.]
Monday, December 21st, 2009 at 11:30am by Gary Suarez
Now ten years since originally forming, The Hope Conspiracy is still killing it. The band’s latest release was this year’s True Nihilist, a killer three-song EP showcasing the savage yet smart hardcore that we’ve come to expect from the band. No official word yet on when we’ll see a proper (and overdue) full-length follow-up to 2006′s Death Knows Your Name, but you can ask the guys yourself during their upcoming flurry of European and American tour dates this coming January. Opening acts for these shows vary, but include Nails (the latest project from Todd Jones, formerly of Terror and Carry On) and fellow Deathwish acts (and my Best Albums of 2009 picks) Blacklisted, Lewd Acts, and Rise And Fall. The New York date (flyer above) boasts an especially awesome lineup of hardcore supergroup United Nations, black metal locals Black Anvil, and Pennsylvania’s Mother Of Mercy, as well as the aforementioned Blacklisted. All dates below, with ticketing info when available.
There must be something in the water; another awesome supergroup has been born. Says a press release delivered by carrier pigeon to the MetalSucks Mansion:
The teaser trailer advertising Bitter End’s forthcoming CD Guilty As Charged got my adrenaline pumping with its promise of metallic NYHC-styled aggression. Unfortunately, I was a little glum that I’d have to wait until August 3 until the disc released on Deathwish–or so I thought. Apparently, the label has decided to try a clever, though certainly not unprecedented strategy to entice people to pick this one up. If you pre-order the CD or vinyl editions now, you get the digital files for the entire album right now. Not one mere track, not a bonus track–the full LP as MP3s. Deathwish have also gone and done this for a couple other artists simultaneously, namely poppy post-hardcore act End Of A Year (bleh) and mysterious powerviolence supergroup United Nations (yay).
