Axegrinder : "Satori"

Hearing something called crust punk can mean different things. Since this band's last album came out 30 years ago I was hoping it had more in common with the punk bands that held a more apocalyptic and industrial tone along the lines of Amebix. I was correct in this guess. Amebix also means that there is a healthy dose of Killing Joke in the sound, though we know how butt hurt those guys get when I bring that up. Any ways in regards to this band the drums and the heavily accented narrative of the husky vocals work together to create more of a droning mood that pleases my ears. The guitars have a fair amount of melody in them. There are a few touches of almost 90s rock shoveled into their sound. If this is the definition of crust punk then it's a genre I like more than I normally think because it doesn't rely on speed.

There is a more deliberate chug to :the Unthinkable" which recalls the more rock roots of older punk. The chorus chants ' here come the crazies", not the hookiest thing ever , but it works for this song. "Over" stomped along with a similar mood and intensity. Not standing out , but aslo pretty consistent with what they have been doing up to this point. There is a more metallic muscle flexed on "the Hurting". There is a great bass tone not only on the title track, but most of the songs benefit from it's thick over driven power. Vocally many of the songs carry a similar declaration. Sometimes this comes across more as a bark than a sung vocal.

The guitars get a little more aggressive on "Under the Sun". The attempts to sing on the chorus are not the best , though the overall mood of the songs presses past this fact.The bass takes over the melody on the power ballad "Too Far From Home" that reminds me a little more of Warrior Soul than Killing Joke. Overall their moody metallic blend of sounds to herald impending doom are woven together well and they accomplished what they set out to do. I'll give this album a 9 and see how it grows on me. This comes out on Rise Above Records July 13th.