Under Pressure “Black Bile” CD

The latest from unique Canadian hardcore/punk outfit Under Pressure is the "Black Bile" EP (on Escape Artist Records), which tears through seven rather short but sweet tracks before closer "The Last" totally fucks convention by plodding on for 8+ minutes of slower and much darker mayhem that totally makes the release in my opinion. It's one of those situations where you keep expecting the song to end and there be a bunch of blank space with a hidden track or something at the end, because every other song on the disc is like two minutes long, but nope... this fucker actually runs the full 8:11, and actually keeps things powerful and interesting the entire time. Which is curious, because to be honest with you the other tracks aren't really Under Pressure's finest work. They're certainly not bad songs or anything, they're just not as memorable as a lot of their previous output, while "The Last"—which is very unlike anything they've ever done before—is actually pretty fucking incredible, so I'd love to hear them branch out like that more often in the future.

I think this might also be the band's first recorded output since the addition of a second guitar player (I have a really hard time keeping up with details like this), but interestingly enough their sound doesn't really come across very differently to me in terms of the overall attack. The production values are still extremely dry and spacious, with a lot of emphasis on the rhythm section and the extremely killer, original sounding vocals. There are perhaps a hint more little quick lead breaks (in a Black Flag kind of way) or subtle nuances of dual guitar interaction from time to time, but the addition of a second guitarist hasn't particularly "beefed up" their approach to songwriting or recording at all. But I don't mean that in a bad way, it's just kind of curious. I actually really like the way these guys handle themselves sonically. Not a bad record overall, but like I said, "The Last" crushes everything else. Definitely a curious twist to close things out...

Under Pressure "The Last" (excerpt)

Get It

RevHQ
Very Distribution