Circle Of Death by Homewrecker
Forced Under
Circle Of Death
Born To Suffer
Illusions of Peace
Authority of the Mind
Skin The Pig
Punish the Ignorance
Silence the Weak
Unconscious
Ohio Doom-Hardcore band, Homewrecker, recently released the nine track full length album, Circle Of Death. Circle of Death is a step up from their previous release in 2012, Worms And Dirt, in both production and musical ability. Each song is fast, to the point, and crushing. The instrumentation is unforgiving; dropped tuning and quick drums help show that speed isn’t leaving hardcore, something that many could worry about with some of the newer releases from other big name bands. Vocals are deep, guttural growls that convey hatred and emotion. And what is hardcore music, or any music for that matter, if it holds no emotion? Hardcore music is all about emotion and anger, something that Homewrecker did not forget as they strove to become a more well known band.
Production is very well managed with this newest release, something that is usually not taken too much into consideration with bands of the genre. The mix is well done, and each part is heard clear. Something that I really am enjoying about the mixing of the instrumentation is how loud the bass is heard over everything else. With the instruments tuned down, the bass leaves only a dull clanking sound, but with the fast paced strumming and strong bass lines, the instrument leaves little guess work as to what is going on. Drums consist of D-beats and blast beats, simple punk-hardcore drumming, nothing that stands out and I will remember. As for guitars, the rhythm is fast and throughout the release the lead takes quick guitar solos that, as a guitarist, give me shivers.
I’d like to digress, and say that I’ve had the pleasure of seeing
Homewrecker live, when they came through my area with similar bands,
Backtrack and
Harms Way. They put on a great show, and me seeing them live is the reason i’ve decided to take a look at this new release. What really stood out to me when seeing Homewrecker would be that each member of the band does vocals aside from the lead vocalist. While all vocal styles are similar in the band, it’s an exciting thing when all four members break off into either gang vocals or chaotic-like sections of songs.
The thing about almost every new age hardcore band, is that it’s so easy to sound like every other band that’s out there. It was a problem back in the 80’s when hardcore-punk founding fathers such as Minor Threat, Youth of Today, and Circle Jerks were around, but that was punk music, and no one cared about instrumentation or production, everything was recorded in one take with an 8-track, and it was cool just to get your music out to be heard. Now days, with the amount of music that is heard daily, and with the internet to spread songs around, it’s not rare that you hear one band playing an almost identical guitar riff that another band you’ve heard plays. In all honesty maybe that’s why hardcore music these days is fading into a crossover with Metalcore music, as seen in Code Orange’s newest release, I Am King. However, when it comes to ohio outfit, Homewrecker, the music is something that, while heard before, revamps my need to go out and listen to old fast hardcore music, to even listen to old metal bands such as Slayer, and Megadeath. If you’re a fan of the genre, and you’re looking for one of the best hardcore releases of 2014, Circle of Death, by Homewrecker, is the album for you.
Favorite Song: Silence the Weak
Gary, Indiana metallic hardcore band Corkscrew's newest release, Path To Hell, is 14 minutes of pure hell. Released on Work Ethic Records, back in December, Corkscrew throws themselves into the light by showing just what they're capable of. Each track is filled with anger, Derick's vocal range and the band's musical talent keeping the listener under their trance the entire time. Metal-c0re aspects can be seen in songs such as "Abhorrence", and catchy guitar riffs are found throughout. The songwriting ability of those in corkscrew is found in the smallest parts of these songs, from the guitar solo in "Path to Hell" to the ridiculous beatdown breakdown in "Abhorrence". So check this out, and order the cassette off of Work Ethic. This guys are great.
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