It’s not enough for Scandinavia to export the world’s best black metal; the region is pumping out great punk and hardcore as well. Perhaps it’s the confrontational outsider approach both genres have in common. Denmark’s EYES are stepping up to bring their take on hardcore to a larger audience with Spinner (Prosthetic Records). This does not mean they are compromising but balancing out their volatile nature with Deftones -like grooves that put them on the metal-core side of the equation, yet they are not making pop music with the occasional scream but retaining an in your face aggression that builds up into spastic outbursts at times. Are there underlying nu-metal vibes? Yes, but without any of the Adidas swagger. 

The band’s more unhinged qualities bring The Dillinger Escape Plan to mind, yet they refrain from getting into complex math-rock leanings, but they know how to keep things simple yet dynamic with a bass line leading into the more punk rowdiness of Beelzebub”. They tap into kinetic urgency rather than try to rush riffs to speeds that lose the groove. They use breakdowns, but handle them more originally than most bands these days. There is a hookier touch to their songwriting, making this album more memorable than if they just hit you with a bunch of unhinged screaming. They get the point across without beating it to death. “Moving Day For the Overton Window.” It is not the first time metal-core has intersected with nu-metal on this album nor in the bigger picture of music’s current cycle as most metal core bands out today feel like they are just another incarnation of the nineties genre, just sans the baggy pants and Hot Topic eyeliner. 

Songs like “Clown” are a more burly outburst of punk the direction of grindcore. They go for the throat with a feral lust here.”Money Mouth” picks up with where the intensity of the previous song left off, though things are deliberate here.  The title track closes the album. It is the kind of frenzied attack you would expect from these guys. The chaos the vocals allow themselves to descend into holds touches of Mike Patton’s wild vocal flare, though with none of his melodic sensibilities or range. It is more of a chaotic mood, and willing to kick in the need to conform one’s emotions into a package presentable for public consumption, instead, they celebrate the outburst of anger. They have stepped up their songwriting here, which should find them holding their own on larger stages, but have not alienated their fan base by doing so..

Buy the album here:
https://eyeshxc.bandcamp.com/album/spinner

8 / 10
WIL CIFER
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