Relapse Records, one of the leaders in releasing some of the best albums in metal history has shared a 30th-anniversary sampler from their entire catalog. It is available now via all streaming platforms. The sampler features over 200 songs and includes bands from across their history such as Mastodon, Baroness, Obituary, Death, Incantation, Repulsion, Pig Destroyer, Nasum, Yob, Neurosis, Nothing, Torche, Inter Arma, and more.
There is a certain confidence to naming your album after an entire style of music, particularly if the band are playing an already well-established genre. Taking the same tactic as Venom did with Black Metal (Neat) over 20 years ago, Unrest emerge onto the market with their debut album Grindcore (Unspeakable Axe). While Venom may have been appearing during the first wave of black metal, more influential to the genre than being a part of what black metal itself became, Unrest plant their music unquestionably in the realms of grind.
With the band containing members of Woe, TrenchRot and Crypt Sermon, the Philadelphia trio are already boasting some serious pedigree. 9 years in the making, Grindcore frantically charges through 26 minutes of chaotic guitars and duel vocal lines to produce a polished tribute to masters of the genre, Nasum. Despite the bands obvious shared love, Grindcore offers memorable tracks including the ceaseless vocals in ‘Protest Culture’, while ‘Inaction’ is stomping aggression, alongside the raw simplicity of the opening bass riff to ‘Nothing (That’s All You Have To Give)’.
While taking such a bold stance on their album name, Unrest risked seeming arrogant if they hadn’t pulled off their sound. While there are elements of Nasum’s formula streaking across the album, there is a healthy dose of other elements thrown in to give this release some serious punch in its own right. Grindcore might not be the defining album that Black Metal was, but any serious grind fan should still give this album the chance to take a solid boot to their eardrums.
7.0/10
CAITLIN SMITH