Swamp Thing “In Shame” CD

"In Shame" (released by 6131 Records) is the debut full-length from Swamp Thing, another incredibly solid hardcore band from here in Richmond, VA that I had heard in bits and pieces, but I clearly slacked for way too long and hadn't yet picked up their previous EP when this CD showed up in the mail. Expect 13 tracks averaging a minute or two apiece (never topping three) of generally fast 'n' angry hardcore with just the right amount of variety to keep things interesting—be it absolutely raging blasts of speed, slightly more midpaced rhythms that provide some breathing room, subtle hints at melody, or tinges of (barely) rocked out chord progressions. The vocals are also much more snarlingly bitter than a lot of the hardcore that I encounter these days, which certainly lends a more vitriolic sense of furious energy to the material and helps to separate the band from some of the more typical approaches that tend to be found out there. That's not to say that what they're doing is completely unfamiliar, but there's also no need to rewrite the book on this niche of hardcore if you know what you're doing and have a good handle on songwriting, and Swamp Thing obviously meets that criteria. The performances are tight, the recording's great, the layout looks awesome... what more do you need? I'm sold.

Swamp Thing "Crush"

Close my eyes and lean back. Just fall into the gray. A coward's escape, but I can't fight today. I'll let the white noise win and pretend to die. It will all be done someday. Fade to numb, to remain silent and sick again.

6131 Records (CD)
6131 Records (LP)
eMusic (mp3)
iTunes (mp3)