Fast, grinding hardcore that has a tendency to lose itself in a mess of speed and chaos but, when reined in, presents some enjoyably distinctive ugliness. The blurring blasts recall the rangier side of the Capitalist Casualties back catalogue, Man Is The Bastard’s more straightforward forays or Iron Lung at their most unrestrained. There’s also a weird sense of Anton Bordman gone power violence, though this is (a) perhaps due to the drum n’ bass set-up and (b) likely an unhelpful comparison for most casual readers. While this is all well and good in terms of gut-punch immediacy, it’s in their mid-to-slow moments that Thetan really start to shine. The teetering riffs and rambling forays offset and accentuate the murderous speed, maximising the impact of the whirlwind drumming and scrape-throated vocals so that you’re forced to stop, listen and consider rather than just weather and accept yet another blistering hardcore shitstorm.
