Waste

Reviews

Waste The Next Century is Almost Over EP

Dutch hardcore types wind back the years with a remontada release a mere 40 years after their debut, which is a level of lackadaisicalness to which one can only tip your bonnet. The tunes sound broadly how you would expect a band who made their debut in ‘82 would sound. A nice nostalgia trip around the musical tropes of the time—a dash of anarcho here, a pinch of Oi! there. A real Bombay mix of second-wave punk and a pleasant enough way to spend your time, but if they waited another 40 years for a release, I wouldn’t exactly be calling for them to pull their finger out.

Waste The Lost Tapes: Oudenbosch HC 1981-1983, Vol.1 EP

Any self-respecting Dutch punk aficionado will be aware of WASTE’s History Repeats EP, but it easily may have slipped under the radar of fans of NITWITZ or FRITES MODERN. These five tracks dredged from the archive are rehearsal/live quality, and the fidelity reflects that, but the songs are good and the spirit is lively enough to make this worthwhile in my view. WASTE’s style is a cool blend of melody and aggression, really lifting up the FRITES MODERN comparison for me. Borderline hardcore but nowhere near the speed or density of BGK or GEPØPEL. I have zero graphic design skills so I’m not saying I’m capable of making better cover art than this, but like…maybe ask a friend or something? Simple layouts can be cool but blown-out and pixelated cover art in 2021? Shame. Cool record, though.

Waste History Repeats EP

Swirling guitars, spinning fast psychotic grinds of explosive vigor. Enter WASTE from Holland, yet another approach to quick demanding hardcore and punk, completely different than AGENT ORANGE or BGK. WASTE is aggressive; an onslaught of butchering mayhem bolts you to the electric chair with schizoid charges of outrageous fury.