Even though I'm an enormous fan of Finnish hardcore, despite the fact that Endstand is one of Finland's best known hardcore bands, I had never really heard that much of their material other than a few compilation/sampler tracks here and there. So I was pretty damn blown away by "The Time is Now", the band's latest full-length and 
Another recent Lifeforce Records debut comes from Germany's Fall of Serenity in "Bloodred Salvation", though the band already has quite a few releases under its belt. These cats seem to have a few loose ties to the metalcore scene, but there's really no denying that this shit's all metal: From the chunky midpaced power chords and efficient melodic Swedish styled harmonies to the few instances of raging black metal-esque speeds—not to mention the various forms of snarling, screaming, growling vocals. Upon first listen the instrumental intro got my hopes up quite a bit due in large part to the rather meaty guitar tone, so I was initially undecided as to my take on the rest of the album until my ears adjusted to the rest of the recording—though honestly, aside from minor little adjustments here and there, I can no longer recall exactly what it was that didn't quite suit me at the time. I won't lie, this is a fairly standard album that doesn't particularly separate itself from the pack all that much, but I've not been exposed to as much of this genre in recent months, so my tolerance has built back up a bit. That's not to discredit Fall of Serenity, however, as the songwriting on this album boasts both a strong degree of energy as well as a searing sense of furiousness that, when combined with a solid sound and tight musicianship, effectively holds my interest for the duration of the album. It may not be anything inventive per se, but they're extremely good at what they do, and I enjoy this album. Excellent cover art, too!
Fall of Serenity "Out of the Clouds"
Fall of Serenity "A Piece of You"
Make the grab if you dig the tunes:
On their second full-length, "Sacrifice" (also on 
Comments
You absolutely MUST check out the latest from Down My Throat, ‘Through the River of Denial”. I tell you, this is some of the best trashy hardcore ever to come out.
http://www.fullhouserecords.com/dmt/
I’m not in a streat team or anything like that, I just love this album.
7.18.2006 | By Anonymous
Oh well, while I’m at it, check out Sweden’s Totalt Jävla Mörker too for some good dirty hardcore. The video for Kall Värl is also what I would call a perfect video for the song.
http://www.totaltjavlamorker.com/.
7.18.2006 | By Nick
I’m pretty sure he’s done write-up’s on both bands.
Andrew, have you checked out the Betrayed full length yet? I picked it up last night and I don’t quite know what to think. I’m digging it a lot though.
7.18.2006 | By Tyrone
Yeah, I’ve been a fan of Down My Throat for years, those guys rule. I covered their new record sometime back when it came out. I haven’t heard the new Totalt Jävla Mörker disc yet, but they are indeed a solid band.
Tyrone, I dig the new Betrayed. I just got it Friday so I haven’t spent but so much time with it yet, but I liked that the recording was finally more balanced. I’m not floored but it’s a damn fine album overall. Even better is the 2xCD 108 discography, though! Heh, heh. I’ll throw write-ups on the site for these in the coming weeks…
7.18.2006 | By Andrew Aversionline
Oh, so the 108 discography is out already? I forgot all about that. I’ll have to go check that out.
7.18.2006 | By Tyrone
That Finns do two things well, Formula 1 and HC, and that Endstand is no exception. It’s sorta sad to hear Deadsoil start to sound like they’re from So Cal though.
7.20.2006 | By Johnny