Breaking Point/Wiretap split 7"

Another SRH/CCHC collaboration here bringing together two of the UK's most active scenes. First up we have some new songs from Breaking Point. Now this is a band that makes up for the occasional mediocre song by having one of the most bizarre individuals in UKHC singing for them. Truly, if we sit down and analyse the music, yeah it’s solid and good for a mosh but that’s pretty much it...however seldom do we get the chance for a thorough analysis as the senses are more often than not, drawn to the human oddity stomping around at the front of the stage. For those who’ve not encountered BxP’s frontman Louis Gautier, i can only describe him as a Brillo pad given human form. Or for those of you familiar with Marvels premier Canadian super hero team, Alpha Flight he resembles the character called Puck (above). Here is a man, so haunted by his past and trapped in his own bizarre reality that he seemingly can no longer distinguish the simple difference between confectionary and crisps.

His lyrics plumb the very depths of gritty human experience, no doubt drawing much inspiration from his time “working the door” at a local Salsa evening in Ashford. Life is indeed cold. On to the music, mostly its kinda swaggering metallic thugged out HC, with shades of lumbering 90’s NYHC. Maybe a little Stout or NJ Bloodline influence? I dunno, i don’t really listen to that stuff too much. Drummings better on these songs than before, it seems that Ben Sakers life long quest for rhythm has finally yielded fruit. Bound In Shadow reminds me of Downpresser for some reason. I think its the vocal phrasing at the beginning that is similar. Louis has always had a strong, gutteral voice, I guess that comes from speaking up for persecuted apes back in his native Egypt as a youngster. Solid shit. I envisage much fist swinging taking place during the middle eight. The David Mayes of The Hardway fame supplies additional vocals here but i was not really paying attention to what he said or sounded like, as i was lost in my own thoughts, wondering what it would be like to watch Breaking Point playing to a crowd solely comprised of salsa dancing primates. Cheap shots aside, BXP do this style well and they do it with enough enthusiasm and vigour to make it enjoyable to watch. Fair play lads.

Cardiffs Wiretap weigh in on the the other side with three new tracks. These tunes seem to have more of a bombastic Buried Alive/Despair/Earthmover feel than the stuff on their old EP. Opening intro has an early Terror feel that I’m sure gets the floor moving. Good, fast, crunchy late 90’s style hardcore, It’s a progression I back hard.Musically Its all very well played and structured. Drummers got some pace and flare and kudos to the guitarist for wrenching the sound of a whinnying horse out of his guitar on the third track. Darke does vocals in this band as well as AOTC but I can’t help but feel his vocals and phrasing are better suited to his other band. Whilst I understand that his more balls out metal screaming style wouldn’t really work for Wiretap, it does sound like he’s not firing on all cylinders here and thats a shame because the songs themselves are really well written.

Once again I’ve been sent no lyrics or artwork for this release so I can’t really tell you anything about how it looks or what either band are shouting about.

Wiretap

Breaking Point

Purgatory Records

Ark Of The Covenant demo/7"

I already posted an uncharacteristically gushing review of this Welsh bands demo on a couple of message board. For readers who don’t frequent the same online hives of scum and villainy as I, here’s an amended version of that post. I believe these recordings are now actually being released as a 7” rather than a demo, normally i frown on that kinda jumped up bullshit move, but in AOTC’s case i make an exception as this is too good to languish on a tatty CDR.

I’m not one to deal in hyperbole nor do i subscribe to the "yeah but they are good dudes/sympathy mosh" school of thought, so when i say that the demo by the aforementioned metallic hardcore outfit Ark Of the Covenant is "the shit" you should know that i'm not yanking your plank. Drawing very obvious influence from the sounds of early Arkangel and Day Of Sufferings “Eternal Jihad” album, this is total metallic hardcore fanboys wet dream. From the crisp production through to the cheese-dick spoken word section, every detail/cliche is correct and executed with a precision and vengeance that only comes from players with a genuine scholars enthusiasm for their chosen style. I hope that when i see this band play live, the guitar player is wielding a black jackson guitar and there are two stripy t shirts, some "curtains" hairstyles, at least one pair of canvas Airwalks and a demo with a played out Gustave Dore illustration on the front.

Likewise, in two years time i hope that the band will have turned their back on the principles that once defined them, started peddling drugs/knocking their girlfriends about and begin wearing Lacoste tracky tops and tight fitting caps in an effort to look like they've "moved beyond the narrow minded constraints hardcore". I don’t have any artwork for this record so instead here’s a picture of my favourite Welshman and one of the forgotten fathers of occult fiction and decadent horror, Arthur Machen.