Hard Response “Hostile Environment” CD

Hard Response is probably best known for their early appearances on the "East Coast Assault" and "Philly Dust Krew" compilations (on the latter of which sandwiched between the almighty Starkweather and All Out War), though their perfectly solid sole full-length, "Single Bullet Theory", was released by Gain Ground Records in 1996. And now, more than 10 years later, they're back with this self-released follow-up, "Hostile Environment", where three out of five original members (joined by two "new guys") crank out nine tracks (plus an unlisted re-recording of the awesome "His Shame" from their debut) of crunchy yet slightly atypical metallic hardcore that, as expected, has more in common with that sorely missed 90's era from which the band was born. I don't recall "Single Bullet Theory" having been particularly well-promoted in its day, but some of that might have been because it simply wasn't nearly as heavy and in your face as most of the bands that Gain Ground was known for working with (Fury of Five, Neglect, Next Step Up, etc.), which may have worked to Hard Response's disadvantage at the time, as they were exploring a more midpaced and rocked out direction that was openly melodic and quite different from the norm. Traces of that sort of thing are still present amidst some of the more carefully executed grooves and melodic attributes herein, but to be honest with you this is a more streamlined affair that tosses in just a hint more speed (and therefore energy), more heaviness, and more of an occasional old school hardcore undercurrent that keeps the band sounding full and aggressive without losing their identity or resorting to any of the genre's most generic trappings. There are still a ton of different influences floating around, but for the most part the songwriting's on the mark and can actually get pretty damn memorable at its best. Nice recording, too. Crisp and clear, with a decent bass presence and an even mix across the board. The only minor setback is the packaging, which leaves a little to be desired in that there's only a one-card insert with some recording credits and such: No lyrics, etc. They do include the lyrics and some brief liner notes on their website, which is cool, but in this day and age it almost defeats the purpose of pressing up a CD if you're going to leave that kind of content out of the booklet, doesn't it? No big deal, though. Check this shit out and see what you think. If you happen to have heard "Single Bullet Theory" (which I always thought was a really cool album), don't let that determine your opinions of this material, because it's a little more in line with the kind of thing they were doing on their demo, with only smatterings of the more melodic and rocked out snippets blended in:

Hard Response "Right Through Me"
Hard Response "Seven Ways"

If you dig what you hear, do as the band says: "Support hardcore music and buy this CD." It's the least you can do, especially since you can download everything else they've done on their website (Awesome!). Get to it:

Hard Response