Initially I wanted to review Anorak because I thought it’d be funny to suggest they do a split release with metallic crust ponx Balaclava. Maybe not the loftiest of reasons, but there we go – as the internet will often tell you, we here at CZ are pathetic, pasty, snivelling beasts whose only real delight in music is to curl our lip at it and make snide, overly-knowing remarks in its direction. Upon arrival, though, the press release leant itself to actual, god’s honest intrigue. Why? Because apparently Anorak play a hybrid style of “grind n’ roll,” which was rather a new one on me and proved a mysterious prospect. After all, I’m au fait with a wide variety of gargle/blastbeat combos and have also heard more renditions of ‘Louie Louie’ than perhaps befits a man of my age and stature, so why should the twain not meet? Why indeed! Soilent Green meld theirs with southern metal, after all, and both Systral and Entombed attempted to lend their own lumpen extremity a dose of rockified swagger. Spinning it, though, I’m puzzled. Even with my opera glasses I can detect nary a shred of rock n’ roll. And the funny thing is that there doesn’t appear to be much grind, either. Instead it’s a solid lump of metallic stuff that sounds like a more frantic Isis walloped in with a bit of Burst and a whiff of Enabler. It’s a sturdy construct and pounds wilfully away with plenty of gusto and no little amount of invention. I do, in fact, quite like it. But I’m still a dab disappointed that this isn’t grind n’ roll and that I’m not hearing ‘Horrified’ merged with the swinging sounds of a frat boy hop. Still, at least I can make that Anorak/Balaclava split 7″ gag. Again.