Best Tracks: River Of Lies, Hand Of
God, Thin Ice
FFO: Year Of The Knife, Judiciary, Trapped Under Ice
Ten tracks.
Twenty minutes. You know exactly what you’re going to get with the debut album
from Manchester hardcore upstarts Guilt Trip, and it doesn’t disappoint in the
slightest. This record is very much My Kinda Shit™, so take the following review with a pinch of salt… but don't assume that the praise is misguided.
Here, Guilt Trip take
the exact same bull-headed, hot-blooded approach to heavy hardcore demonstrated
on their 2016 Unrelenting Force EP
and transplant it onto an LP. The production sounds bigger and fuller this time
around, though, and – despite having very obvious influences from groups like
Trapped Under Ice - the band have more of a grasp on their defining personality.
Primarily, it's an album built around riffage; mountains of
powerful, palm-muted chugging accented by fleeting solos and gnarly pinch
harmonics. Each new section is another reason to mosh until you break something, especially with tempo changes so often implemented at perfect moments. The band feel like a well-oiled machine a lot of the time, motorised by a destructive rhythm section and radiating sheer, ignorant energy (mainly generated by frontman Jay Valentine).
Within the 20-minute
runtime of River Of Lies, there are a
plethora of memorable moments which make this not-just-another-UKHC-album; from
Alex Exemption’s barnstorming guest spot on ‘Hand Of God’ to the crowdkill-worthy double breakdown at the end of
‘Deceit’. The record's true highlight, though, is 'Thin Ice' - a song so adrenalised and in-your-face that it almost feels like it's emerging from the speakers to physically beat you down. Drummer Tom Aimson shines on this track, with thumping toms, creative fills, and great usage of the ride bell giving the percussion a distinctly unstoppable feel.
This full-length debut from
Guilt Trip is quite easily one of the best hardcore releases of 2019. It's a testament to the strength of the British scene, and there's no reason for you not to check it out if you're a fan of heavy music and big fuck-off riffing.
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