Artwork by Caroline Harrison

Grindcore is always a fun ride, whether you just need some audible manic episodes in your ears or a nice alarm clock to get you up and going in the morning. Gadget, a Swedish-based grindcore outfit, dropped a fiery, near-fourteen-minute crash course, Coerced (De:Nihil Records). While the first handful of tracks are absolute burners, we are met with a five-and-a-half-minute-long, harsh noise interlude, which is the longest track on the record. This kind of takes the wind out of the sails for a bit, but there are still many highlights to this record.

“Nonsense” opens up Coerced with a fade-in effect of sheer chaos approaching. A little over half a minute in, and the song opens up to a speedrun to the end of time as D-beat and blastbeat drumming fills the atmosphere as Emilia Henriksson’s vocals tear through the void.

“What Doesn’t Serve You” is another great standout on the record as the chaos comes hot and fast out of the gate before some groovy mosh starts up. Before you know it, headbanging will ensue, but the song quickly comes to an end fifty-one seconds in.

While I skip the “False Pulse” interlude, this is more so to get to the closing track, “Violently Silent.” This felt more like a Sludge Metal track to me, and that is not in any way a negative mark, as the aggression stays high, but the tempo is brought back down to Earth a bit. The buildup to the outro gave me some post-metal vibes as well. This outro felt like the climax of the song, and quite frankly, the record as a whole.

Overall, a really solid grindcore release from a veteran of the subgenre in Gadget. Coerced will surely be a favorite for many listeners, new and returning.

Buy the album here:
https://gadgetgrindcore.bandcamp.com/album/coerced

6 / 10
TIM LEDIN
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