Mind you, a couple of them – namely Gnaw Their Tongues and De Magia Veterum – already have discographies vast / absurd enough to challenge Drowning the Light or Striborg, but recently the Dutch noisenik has been spreading his creative wings under a greater variety of monikers…even if those same wings flap a fairly similar way. That boy Mories: he’s quickly becoming the new Shatraug, always juggling a thousand projects at once. If the 24 minutes on offer here are a declaration of intent, then Undersmile are a band to watch out for and as for this split, it frames two contrasting bands with plenty of talent in a delightful little package. Undersmile’s influences are clearly disparate, and a journey through sonic terrain occupied by the likes of Fudge Tunnel, Boris, Melvins, Michael Gira’s various incarnations, and even Nick Cave is necessary in order to trace the origins to their sound. Taz and Hel’s joint female vocals are part marijuana drawl and part Sabbath Assembly, and are a sprawling highlight throughout. The split’s true winners are Undersmile, whose gloomy post-doom injects some much-needed originality into a stuffy Oxford music scene. Vocalist and guitarist Harry Goodchild obviously harbours an admiration for the likes of Steven (Porcupine Tree) Wilson – to this much, his singing bears witness – and Caretaker manage to embed their down-tempo, progressive, sludgy post-rock firmly in the memory, leaving the listener eager to hear more. Winchester’s Caretaker contribute only 11 minutes to this largely intoxicating split that can be picked up for as little as four quid from Blindsight – a bargain in this epoch of inflation. It’s a decent album, but not one that makes much of a dent in today’s scene other than to live off the back of a name and a ‘re-formation’ marketing line. Maybe it’s slightly heavier than their earlier material, but there’s not a snifter of a ‘Punishment’-style crowd-pleaser to be had on here. The bottom line is that if you’ve ever heard the guys before – and let’s face it, who hasn’t? – you’ll have a good idea how this album sounds.
How does that apply to Reborn In Defiance? Well, the album is pretty standard Biohazard fare, with an abundance of bounce-along riffs filled out with the obligatory in-unison shouting parts that make the Brooklyn hardmen sound like they do today…which is pretty much what they sounded like 20 years ago. Of course, the amount of innovative developments since the first commercially sliced loaf back in 1928 makes that a pretty redundant phrase these days. I suppose the hardcore heads will herald this as the best thing since sliced bread: the return of the classic ‘Hazard lineup, and a new album to boot. LIMITED SPACE AND TIME MEAN THAT NOT EVERY RELEASE WE COMMISSION FOR REVIEW MAKES IT INTO PRINT… THAT’S WHAT THE SITE’S USEFUL FOR THOUGH, RIGHT? SO TAKE A DEEP BREATH AND BRACE YOURSELF FOR THIS INSTALLMENT OF REVIEWS… THE NEXT ROUND IS DUE TO BE PUBLISHED ONLINE SOON.
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