Reviews

Aback Distribution

Absolute Order? Arrrgh EP

ABSOLUTE ORDER? brings quick, tight, pogo-able punk to any party with the Arrrgh EP. Five songs (four originals and a cover), bashing and chugging their way in a UK82 style. There is something here that is very different from what most people would expect from something described as UK82, though. There’s an element of play in ABSOLUTE ORDER? that is less hardcore and more like something the TOY DOLLS might deliver, a sort of humorous outlook on the dark lyrics. The song “Blink of an Eye” is perhaps the darkest of the bunch, with lyrics critiquing our collective misuse of Mother Earth, but then ABSOLUTE ORDER? heads right into a blasphemous cover of “Barbara Ann” that is definitely meant for fun. Overall, an enjoyable spin.

Farsa Farsa 12″

Right from the introduction to the first song “Futuro Incierto,” the listener knows that a relentless, ruthless hardcore tornado with the subtle determination of a charging hippo is coming their way, and you don’t have much time to run or grab earplugs to protect what’s left of your hearing after years of D-beat abuse. Really, this is for the best. FARSA is a band from Berlin with an international cast and this 12” is their first proper record. They are definitely not reinventing the wheel, which I presume was never their ambition, but they deliver perfectly what they set out to, and I am fine with this humble but crucial achievement. If you like your hardcore music with a hard-hitting käng flavour, FARSA will speak to your heart for fourteen good minutes. I am reminded of SVAVELDIOXID in that they build on the heaviest brand of ’90s käng hardcore like SKITSYSTEM, WOLFPACK, or DRILLER KILLER (all without the metal moments), but crank up the distortion and just unleash the fury. The production, the riffs, the gruff angry vocals in Spanish, the pummeling power, everything is done right. A sure win for me.

Pisscharge Edën LP

FUCK YEAH!!! Get past the band name and doom metal-looking LP cover. There are so many reasons this Hanover band’s (made up of Brazilian, Chilean, and German band members) debut LP is awesome! First, this sounds so fucking urgent, not in a “we liked and wanted to sound like urgent hardcore from the ’80s” but actually like urgent hardcore from the ’80s, where the emotion, politics and passion of what the band is trying to express fuel the intensity. Second, it doesn’t sound like hardcore from the ’80s, nor is there any particular direct reference point except maybe the experimentation and intensity of later ’90s and ’00s Brazilian hardcore (this is way more aggressive but let’s say… MERDA?), where anything: melody, metal riffage, or simple boot-stomping punk can throw itself in to twist around the fourteen tracks of hardcore steamrolling. Third, it has absolutely wickedly scathing female vocals. Fourth, it is dedicated to the memory of Brazilian feminist and anti-police violence activist Marielle Franco, who was assassinated in 2018 in Rio de Janeiro. “Never forget / Organize without fear!” Fifth, the balance of chaotic looseness and musical competency is perfect, where sandpapery blasts of simple metal riffing charge simple and loose, but there’s still deft thrash. Sixth, songs are sung in English, Portuguese, and Spanish, with a fold out lyric sheet containing translations. Seventh, the punchy recording is mastered well, but also balanced with sounding really raw. Eighth: Q: And D-beat? A: And D-beat. Ninth, the band is self described as “Antifa punk, no grayzone.” I’m sold!