Fuck your punk rock #3: Frequency Ass Bandit

Divider/Colony - Split 7''
2012,

I found this impressive ep via the mighty Toxicbreed Funhouse blog and was instantly blow away by the streams available at the bands joint bandcamp site. Being the vinyl-hoarding asshole that I am I of course had to get this seven incher and was graciously offered a digital copy to tide me over until the real deal arrives in my mailbox. This split offers up two fairly new (to me anyways) acquaintances, the first one up being Divider, who open with a track called Tide Lungs. Unlike their split-mates, Divider's music eschews speed altogether and is instead based in a slightly discordant, churning midpaced kind of hardcore, laced with dirty sludginess and dark melodies. Tide Lungs is a four minute piece built mainly on heavy chugging metallic riffs and great sceamo-ish melodies, driven by vicious, forceful vocal patterns; all of it constantly fuelled by an awesome rythm section. I especially dig the almost tribal tom-tom/snare/bass drum patterns and how they interact with the rumbling, at times almost droning, bass . There are lots of variey within the song even though it never really strays far from it's basic structure. This is one of the better songs in this style I've heard in a long while. Truly top notch song writing here. And from what I gather they've definately widened their sound compared to their earlier releases (although I guess one song is hardly evidence of any sort of stylistic shift).
Next up is Colony, whose music is firmly centered in a much darker and more aggressive kind of hardcore, where all kinds of tempos and moods are explored, from blistering unhinged speed to devastatingly heavy almost doomy sludge. There are times when the slow parts are so fucking thick and crushing it's unbelievable; and sometimes those slow parts remind me of (a darker) Melvins or Neurosis, not only in the burly vocal delivery but aso in the massive, choking density they create, especially in their second track Empty Caskets. And this is where the band truly shines, in my opinion. Because, even though the band utilise some really intense speed at times, those frenetic tempos are never really the basis for their songs but rather a means to achieve a dynamic flow within them, alongside really tastefull, really dark melodies and some almost post-rock like guitar swirls. All three Colony songs are widely different and hugely memorable. I must definately delve deeper into the discographies of both acts because this is some wickedly raging shit and I'm loving every nano second of it. For fans of discordant raging hardcore, in the vein of Converge and Botch as well as fans of bands like Neurosis and Melvins. Highly, HIGHLY recommended! Buy.