Despise You/Agoraphobic Nosebleed – And On And On…

despise you | agoraphobic nosebleed | label | buy

It’s only fitting that two of the most important grind bands in the history of the genre should get together to record a split. And what a split it is. Despise You, from California, is first up. They play a version of grindcore that has more powerviolence elements in it than most. They take a lot of cues from similar bands like Lack of Interest or In Disgust, but it comes through faster and angrier. Roll Call is foaming-at-the-mouth angry. By far the best song on their side of the split, but everything they do here is great. Fear’s Song is aptly named; it’s and old-school hardcore punk song in the vein of bands like Fear. It shows that while Despise You can definitely grind, they can also change things up and have fun with their music. You Can’t Fix Me, Don’t Trip is what Slayer would sound like if they made a grindcore song. It’s all just really great stuff and holds your interest throughout all their blisteringly fast songs. On the other side of the record is near-mythic grindcore band Agoraphobic Nosebleed, starring Scott Hull (Pig Destroyer) on guitar. Featuring three vocalists, they’re a bit unique in the usually straight-forward grind scene. Their opener, Half Dead, isn’t even grindcore, it’s straight up doom. Not terrible, grind-band-wants-to-be-doom like Cephalic Carnage, but it’s menacing, heavy and frightening. As Bad As It Is kicks right into fantastic Napalm Death and Terrorizer worship. Since Scott Hull is the de facto King of anything grindcore, AN’s side of the split does have a bit better production and Scott is definitely an insanely talented guitarist/noise-maker. At the end of the day, which side is better depends on what kind of grindcore you like: fast and angry and full of passion? Despise You wins. Creates atmosphere and has a great guitarist at the helm? Agoraphobic Nosebleed is the victor. But whichever you choose, you can’t go wrong.

Written by Jackson May
More: 2011, EPs, Grind, Quick.Play Reviews, Agoraphobic Nosebleed, Despise You