Here are three of the four new tracks in case you just can't wait.
JAZZBRUNCH - "An Invitation to an Enormous Disappointment"
SNAG - "Colony Collapse"
ELLE - "All Bets Are Off"
In July of 2018 I had my first podcast with friend Sean Warkentine when he came through on the An Ant And An Atom tour with his friend in Alder & Ash. It was a swell time, so when he came through in mid-2019 with his two-piece rock/punk/noise outfit TOUCHING GOD doing podcast #2 was a no-brainer. The other half of TOUCHING GOD is Adrian Sutherland who was an absolute sweetheart and the duo released an EP just a few months back titled 'Profane' that is well worth your time. In addition to our podcast I also captured a song live in Nanaimo when they played here. The podcast is just shy of an hour and thirty minutes and broken up into three parts, all of which are available to stream and/or download for free via this link.
2003 was a breakout year for the killer sound that I associate with GAMENESS. Their four-song EP 'The All Seeing Eye' breaks away from metalcore and into sassy, screamy hardcore not unlike The Death Of Anna Karina and Killed By Malaise. The delivery of the vocals is all over the place, as the sassy spoken word is reminiscent of later Orchid but the higher pitched, harrowing screams lend an ear to Croatia's Mališa Bahat. It's that self titled LP 'Gameness' that takes the cake as the ultimate release and is this reviewer's favourite by far. Things get screamy and precise right from the first track "Crève la Fin", including a semi-experimental second half. "Émergence" long and epic (6:54) and is slightly reminiscent of Terry Green and Cougar Den. "Il Ne Reste Rien" has strong ties to French screamo such as Daïtro, Mihai Edrisch, Dodewaard and Amanda Woodward and even dips into Japanese-esque screamo by the end. "Another Part Of Decadent Organisation" is a catchy fuckin' tune and calls back again to The Death Of Anna Karina, especially with the sass and screaming combination that always has me dancing around by the end. The conglomerate, instrumental hook that is "It's Difficult to Smoke With Bo" sits in the middle of the album, giving the listener a slight breather before the behemoth "Present Day Present Time" kicks in for 5:20, complete with an additional string/orchestra section. "Low Waves" is next and is fucking ridiculous. It is the hardest, fastest and most aggressive song the band ever produced and it's like Orchid on speed, aka Loftus. Mmmmm, so tasty. "Réthorique de Destabilisation" is next and is another dense banger with a substantial breakdown 50 seconds in that was no doubt inspired by Amanda Woodward while closer "Sinous Passenger" is a trippy, mostly instrumental goddamned nightmare.