Reviews
Hate Division: Hate division
18/06/09 || Daemonomania
As Day II of the Maryland Deathfest was kicking into high gear, and my brain was shifting into reverse from all the abuse it had suffered, we met the big mean lookin’ dudes from Hate Division. They took my complete piece of shit Global Domination business card and I took their spiffy CD. Pleasantries may have been exchanged but I’m fucked if I recall what they were.
This four-song EP is the first release from these Canuck deathgrinders, and I must say they’re on the right path. Four kidney-stabbing little treats for those who love teh blast, teh floorpunch, and teh conciseness. Do they win the divisional finals against Torture Division? No way in Hades. But anyone can tell if these chaps put their bacon bits in order they could be a force to be reckoned with.
So let me describe the tunes. Blasting, speedy but not too speedy guitar riffs punctuated by Dying Fetusesque breakdowns and semi-fast passages where the band really shines. Here’s my first warning: don’t rely too heavily on Teh Fetus. That type of brootal breakdown has been so overdone it is no longer brootal. Stick a fucken fork in it and use more mid-paced sections with creative riffs. The guitarwork is not exactly mindblowing, sounding kinda thin here and there (self-produced, so that’s ok) but quite worth the price of admission, and the bass is grade A. Second piece of advice: people miss the bass, bring it back! Icing on the cake is the dual high-low vocals, both performed pretty darn well. The transitions between them are seamless, and thus my third piece of advice: add a bit more unique character to the vocals and keep those transitions frequent. Number four is just a personal preference – please blast a bit less, thanks.
Yep, with the right production job and a bit more individuality in terms of the death/grind mix, HD could stand for more than high definition. I may have been the definition of high when I got your album, you musclebound young men, but listening to now it dead sober is bringing a positive vibration. And props on the Donnie Darko sample! Don’t stop believin’… Jeebus knows Canada needs some new extreme metal heroes these days.
7/10.
- Information
- Released: 2009
- Label: self-released
- Website: Hate Division MySpace
- Band
- “Gruesome” Sean Wyszynski: vocals
- Howard Young: guitars
- Paul Shaw: bass
- Shane Forsyth: drums, vocals
- Tracklist
- 01. The Externalizing Machine
- 02. Spreading the Seeds of Humanity
- 03. Propagating Lies for the Negligent Mind
- 04. Unfound Hate
