Labels: Carry the Weight
Review by: David Giles
I’ve finally got my turntable fixed and am able to spin this beast that’s been gathering dust on my desk for a few months now. I decided to take a break from reading Wuthering Heights, working out, and being an all round stand-up guy to review it.
Arc of the Covenant and Abolition both play the only type of hardcore that I find myself listening to with any regularity these days: so heavily metal-influenced that they might be better described as metal bands with some hardcore inflections than as “metallic hardcore’ bands. Arc of the Covenant are (perhaps) the most brazenly metal of the two, making me think of early In Flames at times. Hardcore-wise: it’s Morning Again worship to these ears. By the end of their side: a half-sung/half-spoken section followed by a chunny breakdown outro, it felt like 1995 in my bedroom and my mates and I were legit loving it. I would break out Young David and mosh to this for real. (Note: in between writing this review and sending it in I must’ve listened to the last track on this side about 12 or 13 times).
Abolition by comparison have always struck me as more firmly rooted in 90s hardcore/metalcore “” think along the lines of Trial, Unbroken, and of course Morning Again. They’ve probably been the only UK hardcore band that I made any effort to keep up with over the last year. Maybe it has something to do with them playing the single best house show I’ve ever seen”¦ If I’m being honest, I was wondering if they would be able to keep with the storming A-Side though. I swear down, the first riff that kicked in said “fuck yeah we can’: A monstrous metallic stormer da riff. Spiritual Healing! Rust In Piece! Next came a sick chun riff, mellow plucked from the Morning Again back catalogue spoken word part (oh yeah!)”¦ guitars kicked in again! This is a genuinely heavy number. This side is Ride The Lighting. It felt like 1995 again and my mates and I were loving it again. I’M ENRAGED THAT WE’RE ENSLAVED!
This split is 1995 and is metal as fuck. Two perfectly matched bands with legit the best sounds in the game today. I love that I’ve just reviewed a split seven and been able to compare both sides to Morning Again. Here’s hoping that I get the chance to again someday. When I talk about how I’d like my band to sound, this is exactly what I mean. No filler. No pretence. Hardcore fucking rules.