ABUSE
Self Titled Album
Review + Stream

Label: To Live A Lie Records

A quick word of warning: if you’re checking this band out at work or just around company in general, remember those all important qualifiers (music, band, etc etc) when entering “abuse hardcore” into google, or get set for a pretty interesting morning.

It’s a fairly similar experience listening to this first self-titled LP by Raleigh, North Carolina assault crew Abuse. (with a “.”), whose seventeen songs fly past in sixteen blistering minutes. Abuse. is a step up in every way from the preceding A New Low 7″, with clearer but still raw production and a harder edged, metallic sheen (not so much in terms of musical style as that all the instruments sound like they are made of metal, if that makes any sense). Everything feels colder, harder, more unforgiving.

In terms of abusive effectiveness, these guys have definitely improved their game in the short  span between releases. As music as physical assault, think of Abuse. as the smarter, more deliberate and more sadistic cousin to A New Low‘s feral, unhinged meth head. Where that album flailed and thrashed uncontrollably, these songs pick a weak spot and hit it again and again and again with bone crushing decisiveness, and then flail and thrash uncontrollably.

Overall this album is comparably slower than A New Low‘s epileptic power violence, and smuggles in some moments of serious NYHC style groove, like the bastard offspring of Charles Bronson and Madball. These recurring moments of apparent respite from the onslaught are actually anything but, more like a few well aimed sledgehammer swings to the stomach before they go back to ripping your face off with their teeth. Same shit different death.

If you can stomach any more, while you’re in the mood for aural abuse make sure to check out Genocide Pact, the equally impressive and damaging death metal project that shares a few members.