Rotten Sound – Mass Extinction (EP) (Season Of Mist) [Spike]
This is not a slow death; it’s an act of instant, surgical extinction. Rotten Sound, the Finnish grind legends, have returned with their eleventh EP, Mass Extinction, and it proves that after three decades, they are getting more extreme with age. This short, brutal offering is a cynical, politically charged masterclass in hyper-efficient Grindcore, delivering ten minutes of pure, unrelenting violence designed as the perfect soundtrack for a world ready to ignite.
The philosophy here is ruthless efficiency: wham bam, grindcore ma'am. Eight tracks are condensed into a brutal, hammer-beating surge that leaves zero time for reflection. These songs, forged during the sessions for their previous album, Apocalypse, function as concentrated sonic shrapnel. The performances, particularly the drumming of Sami Latva, are beyond ferocious, exhibiting energy that exceeds that of any young, hungry act.
The true impact of this EP lies in how they temper pure blast-beat carnage with fat, corrosive grooves. Tracks like Gone and Empty Shells thrash with the required, inhuman speed, but they are punctuated by the cynical, D-beat anthem of Idealist. Vocalist Keijo Niinimaa snarls his contempt over riffs that open the circle into a mosh pit, using social commentary on distrust and polarization ("Brave New World") as fuel for the fire. This is social justice delivered at a thousand miles per hour.
The production is pristine enough to let the brutality pierce through, yet filthy enough to maintain the necessary ugliness. There is no polish on the content, only on the delivery. The closer, the title track Mass Extinction, wraps up the entire thesis with a final, filthy, sludgy sound that locks the listener into the collapsing void. Rotten Sound’s career is defined by this consistency and quality. They have mastered the ability to take elements from grindcore, death metal, and crust punk, and compress them into a singular, devastating charge. You don't need a longer album when the impact is this dense. 9/10
The philosophy here is ruthless efficiency: wham bam, grindcore ma'am. Eight tracks are condensed into a brutal, hammer-beating surge that leaves zero time for reflection. These songs, forged during the sessions for their previous album, Apocalypse, function as concentrated sonic shrapnel. The performances, particularly the drumming of Sami Latva, are beyond ferocious, exhibiting energy that exceeds that of any young, hungry act.
The true impact of this EP lies in how they temper pure blast-beat carnage with fat, corrosive grooves. Tracks like Gone and Empty Shells thrash with the required, inhuman speed, but they are punctuated by the cynical, D-beat anthem of Idealist. Vocalist Keijo Niinimaa snarls his contempt over riffs that open the circle into a mosh pit, using social commentary on distrust and polarization ("Brave New World") as fuel for the fire. This is social justice delivered at a thousand miles per hour.
The production is pristine enough to let the brutality pierce through, yet filthy enough to maintain the necessary ugliness. There is no polish on the content, only on the delivery. The closer, the title track Mass Extinction, wraps up the entire thesis with a final, filthy, sludgy sound that locks the listener into the collapsing void. Rotten Sound’s career is defined by this consistency and quality. They have mastered the ability to take elements from grindcore, death metal, and crust punk, and compress them into a singular, devastating charge. You don't need a longer album when the impact is this dense. 9/10
Gore - If You Do Not Fear Me (Spinefarm) [Matt Bladen]
Yes, just a thousand times yes, I think I may be a little in love with Haley Roughton's vocals. I missed their debut release A Bud That Never Blooms back in 2023 but they have won me over with If You Do Not Fear Me, the band are built around Haley's experiences in and perspectives on the music scene.
Framing them from a feminine angle with a musical backing from guitarist Alex Reyes, bassist Devin Birchfield, and drummer Wills Weller rounding out this band who will instantly appeal to fans of Spiritbox, Thornhill and The Pretty Wild who I reviewed recently and Brisoh act Adharma who I'm a bit of fan boy for.
It's intense modern metal where Djent/metalcore grooves intertwine with electronic twists and pulses, the stop start riffs switching into ambient passages, produced to sound massive and highlight the dexterous vocals of vocals of Roughton. One moment filled with fragility, the next incandescent rage, then cathartic calls for unity.
She's a vocal sensation, channeling the themes of faded innocence and lost hope that permeate this second EP. It's a set of songs from a more challenging place, 15 minutes of music that journey to the darkest parts of the human mind. With lyrics about abuse, loss and indifference to suffering, this Texas band ride their wave of continued popularity with an EP that's heavy in multiple ways. 8/10
Homegrown - Homegrown (Majestic Mountain Records) [Rich Piva]
Gothenburg, Sweden’s Homegrown brings us some psych instrumental weirdness on their self-titled second record dropped on us by the wonderful Majestic Mountain Records. Not all instrumental records catch with me, actually the majority do not, with some major exceptions. Let’s see how Homegrown does with these ears…
The answer is that it mostly does. I could have gone for maybe ten minutes less of a run time, but the tracks on Homegrown show that these guys can play, they have a plan, and they execute on that plan well. I love the guitar work on Frihetsvisa i A-Moll which sounds vaguely familiar and I will feel dumb when someone tells me this is some kind of old folk song redone by these guys but oh well.
I love the urgent feeling to Häxjakt i Snetakt until the shrooms kick in and everything is alright (mostly). I dig the chiller tune Adams Äpple and how weird it is. The drummer is a madman, as confirmed on Den Hornkrönte. The closer, Talisman, is one of my favourites and closes the record nicely.
It’s a bit long, and the songs run together, but the self-titled Homegrown record is fun to turn on and have in the background while you work or have something to stare at when something may be altering that mind of yours. 7/10
Masters Hammer - Maldorör Disco (Darkness Shall Rise Productions) [Mark Young]
I think In the few years I have been reviewing for this site, I have been relatively blessed in that I haven’t had many ‘hate on sight’ moments. But first, a little about the stars of this review – Master's Hammer. This is an outfit that has been around since 1987 (according to online sources) and their output combines black metal and, in this case, electronic music. Again, prior to sitting down to review I’d never come across them so I’ve come in blind, which is always a good thing. The problem I have is that now I’ve listened to it, I now have to try and find a way of describing it without resorting to the use of ‘bleepy bollocks’ ad nauseam.
It starts with the kind of euro EDM that you might hear on Eurovision, swiftly joined by riffing that seems more at home with industrial than black metal. I’ve said this before that your opening track is your only chance to establish the album with a listener. It has to engage, to make you want to listen to what comes next and in the case of Anděl Slizu it doesn’t. That feeling doesn’t change with Genesis P. Orridge which seems to follow the same pattern as the opener. At this point it seems like a million years removed from black metal but there is nothing here for me. The use of electronic means with each song is fine, I have no issues with that at all.
It’s a bit long, and the songs run together, but the self-titled Homegrown record is fun to turn on and have in the background while you work or have something to stare at when something may be altering that mind of yours. 7/10
Masters Hammer - Maldorör Disco (Darkness Shall Rise Productions) [Mark Young]
I think In the few years I have been reviewing for this site, I have been relatively blessed in that I haven’t had many ‘hate on sight’ moments. But first, a little about the stars of this review – Master's Hammer. This is an outfit that has been around since 1987 (according to online sources) and their output combines black metal and, in this case, electronic music. Again, prior to sitting down to review I’d never come across them so I’ve come in blind, which is always a good thing. The problem I have is that now I’ve listened to it, I now have to try and find a way of describing it without resorting to the use of ‘bleepy bollocks’ ad nauseam.
It starts with the kind of euro EDM that you might hear on Eurovision, swiftly joined by riffing that seems more at home with industrial than black metal. I’ve said this before that your opening track is your only chance to establish the album with a listener. It has to engage, to make you want to listen to what comes next and in the case of Anděl Slizu it doesn’t. That feeling doesn’t change with Genesis P. Orridge which seems to follow the same pattern as the opener. At this point it seems like a million years removed from black metal but there is nothing here for me. The use of electronic means with each song is fine, I have no issues with that at all.
What I take issue with is what appears to be the use of repeated themes and ideas with no real change between songs. They start in more or less the same manner, from Take it or Leave it through to the title track onto Beast Within, none of which resonate with me in any way. I’m just not digging this at all. The question is, do I stay or tap out? Just for you, I stayed the course but results did not get better. The remaining songs occupy the same arrangement as those that mentioned. Its not that its bad (what is bad, anyway), its just dull.
It feels that it will find a home with those who love to dance outside of the normal (and delight in telling you this). I suppose that is point of Avant Garde. To build art for arts sake and to question why things are done the way they are. If you are driven by a need to listen to dance / guitar music that is awkwardly welded together then knock yourself out. Its dull, repetitive and not for me. 5/10
It feels that it will find a home with those who love to dance outside of the normal (and delight in telling you this). I suppose that is point of Avant Garde. To build art for arts sake and to question why things are done the way they are. If you are driven by a need to listen to dance / guitar music that is awkwardly welded together then knock yourself out. Its dull, repetitive and not for me. 5/10
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