So this week, I shall be giving you a nice dosage of Hardcore. No, I’m not talking about Hardcore pr0n, although I must admit, do like my fair share of that. Yeah I know what you’re thinking, but I’m no sexist. I love sex and I love women. Hence my taste for pr0n and the image above.
So what Harcore am I talking about? Well the music of course. Not Hardcore Trance (is there anything lamer?), but the genre of music that formed from the emerging Hardcore Punk bands of the 80’s to aggressive Hardcore bands of the 90s, to the Metalcore acts of the 2000s.
It’s a controversial genre, especially in Metal circles, but this week I shall be offering you 5 tracks that not only shaped the Harcore genre, but that are also damn awesome songs.
Get your Hardcore dose after the jump my friends.
#1 Poison The Well – Slice Paper Wrists
Released in a time when red caps, baggy pants, and middle-class white kids rapping over power chords, moaning about how much their parents suck for only giving them 10 dollars pocket money was the coolest shit going, one band brought something slick and new to the Metal table (get it, get it hehe). In 1999 Poison the Well released their debut album, the phenomenal The Opposite of December.
This stuff may sound fairly basic now, but just over a decade ago, Poison the Well were ground-breaking, being one of the first bands to combine Hardcore and Metal with such proficiency. 4 or 5 whole years before Metalcore burst into the mainstream and over-saturated the market, Poison the Well were already doing it. Today, I present to you the classic, Slice Paper Wrists, from the debut album.
#2 Sick of it All – Scratch the Surface
In 1994 Sick of it All released their third album, and their major label debut, Scratch the Surface. Instead of releasing some watered-down commercial bullshit marketed to the masses, Sick of it All came out fighting with a brutal album to silence those who accused the band of “selling out”. Sick of it All have inspired everyone from Sepultura to Machine Head to Slayer, to thousands of Metalcore bands of the 2000’s.
Step Down may be the most iconic song from Sick of It all, that has become synonymous with the New York Hardcore scene, but it is Scratch the Surface, the title track, today that I shall be recommending, just for its pure badassery.
#3 Biohazard – Punishment
I’m not the biggest Biohazard fan, I must admit, but there is absolutely no denying the brilliance of Punishment. Taken from the band’s second album, Urban Discipline, Punishment is without a doubt, one of the finest Hardcore songs ever.
With the release of Urban Discipline, Biohazard managed to firmly put Hardcore on the map, bringing the genre into the mainstream. The band merged Thrash, Punk, Hip-Hop to create an urban sound that went on to influence everyone from the Nu-Metal acts like Limp Bizkit, to bands such as Hatebreed. If you’re not pumping this song already, what’s wrong with you? Press play dammit. You won’t regret it.
#4 Hatebreed – Final Prayer
Hatebreed are one band that have successfully managed to draw from Hardcore and Metal influences, without falling into the same traps many generic Metalcore bands have. Combining Thrash and Hardcore, Hatebreed have become one of the best modern Metal bands.
The band gained major attraction with their second album, Perseverance, even garnering them a solo guest performance from Slayer‘s Kerry King on the track Final Prayer. Although he has also performed on a Sum 41 track, so…
#5 Bleeding Through – Death Anxiety
Bleeding Through are not just one of the best Metal bands to emerge in the last 10 years, but they also prove to be one of the only Metalcore bands that are actually any good. They combine both elements from Hardcore and Metal without ever sounding tired and generic like many Metalcore bands.
Marta Peterson is a great addition to the band, not only because she’s beautiful, but because her impressive keyboard skills add huge amounts of depth to the band’s sound.
Death Anxiety, taken from Declaration, is one of the band’s heaviest and most aggressive songs, so blast it loud. And blast it proud. A bit like my farts.
