Jesus Piece – …So Unknown
Century Media
Release Date: 13/04/23
Running Time: 28:00
Review by Rory Bentley
9/10
I’ve reviewed some great stuff already this year from sexy Goth Pop to game-changing Folk Metal, but I’ve had a hankering for something that makes me want to yeet myself through a brick wall and Uncle Phil the shit out of people that I hate. (To ‘Uncle Phil’ is to throw someone out of the premises with high velocity as the great man did to DJ Jazzy Jeff in The Fresh Prince of Bel Air). Then along come Jesus Piece with a record that slaps harder than Will Smith at an award show. I promise that’s the last of the Will Smith jokes for today.
“…So Unknown” represents something of a steady evolution from the Philadelphia quintet’s bruising debut “Only Self”, which saw the band firmly cement themselves amongst the likes of Knocked Loose and Code Orange as major players in the modern Hardcore landscape. They share a darkness and savagery with those bands that feels far removed from some of the more sunny sounding bands under the Hardcore banner like Turnstile and Drain, but they have a grasp of massive grooves and Death Metal riffing that makes their sound unique to them.
At a perfectly paced 28 minutes this record does not fuck around, with opener ‘In Constaints’ immediately setting about breaking your face like you owe the band money. The low-slung chug mixed with jabs of tremolo picking introduces the first of many frankly disgusting riffs, and vocalist Aaron Heard sounds like he’s not in the mood for your bullshit! If you like your bowel loosening riffs with Gojira pick slides this one has you covered as well. If you’re hoping that there’s some reprieve from this audio carnage I got bad news for you, bud…
The closest moment of respite you’ll have hereafter is the terrifying discordant feedback for the first few seconds of ‘Tunnel Vision’ before it smashes you with wave after wave of pulverising beatdowns. Yet despite the main order of the day being seething intensity, the album never drags or dips. Like an expert torturer, Jesus Piece have a million and one ways to inflict pain, whether it be the stomping grooves on ‘Gates Of Horn’ or the wonky angular riffing of the swaggering ‘Profane’.
This ability to hurt the listener from so many different angles is helped immensely by the stunning drumwork of Luis Aponte who deftly blends Extreme Metal speed with swaggering swing and thugged-out caveman savagery. The way he locks in with bassist Anthony Marinaro on the mid section of ‘An Offering to the Night’ is breathtaking, providing a head bopping moment of respite before the inevitable spin kick to the mush that follows.
Although Jesus Piece have yet to push and expand their sound in the same way as some of their contemporaries, it is refreshing to hear a band that’s happy to nail their colours to the Hardcore mast while still producing something that drips with atmosphere and idiosyncrasy. For me this is far and away the best straight up Hardcore release of the year and I’ll be upsetting my neighbours with it for a long time to come. Fucking excellent!
‘Gates of Horn’ Official Video
TRACKLISTING:
01. In Constraints
02. Fear of Failure
03. Tunnel Vision
04. FTBS
05. Silver Lining
06. Gates of Horn
07. Profane
08. An Offering to the Night
09. Stolen Life
10. The Bond
LINE-UP:
Aaron Heard – vocals
David Updike – guitars
John Distefano – guitars
Anthony Marinaro – bass
Luis Aponte – drums
LINKS:
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