108 - 18.61

Holy cow!

Rating: 8Holy cow! Nineteen years spent churning out some of the scene’s harshest sonics and judging by this latest offering, these Hare Krishna-following hardcore legends demonstrate life on the righteous path isn’t about to get any mellower yet. Right from the opening strangled-guitar-neck discordance and abrasive pummel of ‘God Talk’ and the piston-drumming of the angular ‘Crescent Moon’ to the somewhat subdued semi-acoustic whisper of ‘Early Funeral’, album number five is calculated and intense in its delivery. With last month’s news of the departure of vocalist Robert Fish and the consequent demise of these legendary spiritual sluggers, ‘18.61’ is the definitive swansong.

For fans of: Unbroken, Shelter, Strife, Main Season

Ronnie Kerswell