Roaring Anthems – Bollocks to Conventions

  • Mondkopf’s I, released under his alias Extreme Precautions, is a punishing, tightly wound piece of experimental electronic music. Created in just one week and released on the French label In Paradisum, the album is a raw distillation of harsh noise, industrial textures, and mechanical rhythms. Tracks average barely over a minute, each delivering bursts of

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  • Cryptic Slaughter’s Convicted isn’t just a record—it’s a statement of intent, a thrash punk assault that defined the crossover era. Released in 1986, this full-length debut out of Santa Monica, California, remains one of the fastest, angriest, and most politically charged albums of its time. Fueled by the youthful chaos of Bill Crooks on vocals,

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  • Bl’ast!’s The Power of Expression, released in 1986, is a hardcore juggernaut that pushed the limits of the genre, twisting the raw energy of Black Flag into something darker and more volatile. Southern Lord’s 2014 reissue, The Expression of Power, not only restores the original album but also includes alternate sessions and unreleased material, giving

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  • Gulch’s Demolition of Human Construct is a visceral debut from Santa Cruz, California, where the band emerged in 2016 as part of a wave of innovative hardcore acts redefining the genre’s boundaries. Combining elements of hardcore punk, crust, and death metal, the 7-inch captures the raw energy and fury that would come to define their

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  • Earth 2 stands as a defining statement in heavy music, marking the genesis of drone metal. Released in 1993, Dylan Carlson and company dismantled traditional song structures, replacing them with monolithic waves of feedback and hypnotic repetition. Spanning three epic tracks, the album’s soundscape is colossal. Carlson’s guitar reverberates endlessly, creating a meditative wall of

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  • Grotus’s Brown is a dense, volatile statement of industrial rock chaos. Released in 1991 on Alternative Tentacles, it blends harsh grooves, intricate sampling, and biting political commentary into a sound that feels as unpredictable as it is deliberate. This isn’t music that conforms—it challenges, disrupts, and provokes. The title track, “Brown,” opens the album with

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  • Neurosis’s Through Silver in Blood is a monolithic achievement in heavy music, often regarded as the cornerstone of post-metal. Released in 1996, it’s a record that doesn’t just demand attention—it envelops you completely. With its crushing riffs, tribal drumming, and layers of texture, Through Silver in Blood builds an atmosphere that feels both apocalyptic and

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  • Trait is a seismic collision of ideologies, soundscapes, and raw power. Released in 1988 on Wax Trax! Records, this EP brought together Ian MacKaye of Minor Threat and Fugazi fame with Al Jourgensen of Ministry, two visionaries from vastly different musical worlds. The result? A record that marries punk’s urgency with industrial’s mechanical grind, creating

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  • Negative Approach’s Tied Down is a raw, blistering assault that defined hardcore punk’s primal fury. Released in 1983 on Touch and Go Records, this 15-minute classic captures the unrelenting energy of Detroit’s most ferocious hardcore band. Forty years later, the rage hasn’t cooled—Negative Approach are still on the road in 2024, bringing their signature snarls

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  • TRIO’s Da Da Da (Ich lieb’ dich nicht, du liebst mich nicht) is a rare example of a song so stripped down that it almost feels like a dare. Released in 1981, it’s a cornerstone of Germany’s Neue Deutsche Welle movement, blending absurd humor with pop minimalism in a way that defied every convention of

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