Hatebreed – The Rise of Brutality / Supremacy
Hatebreed – The Rise of Brutality / Supremacy
Cherry Red Records
Release Date: 14/07/23
Running Time: Rise of Brutality: 32:00 / Supremacy: 36:00
Review by Rory Bentley
The Rise Of Brutality: 9/10
Supremacy: 9.5/10
In perhaps the most on-brand moment of my review schedule so far this year, my letterbox was graced by a double disc reissue of two Hatebreed albums from the fine folks at Cherry Red Records. Can I just shock you? I like Hatebreed. In fact I love Hatebreed. Are they going to surprise you these days? Nope. Will their next album be an absolute meat and potatoes banger that leads to a tour where you will fucking DIE in the pit? Obviously, mate.
Ground-breaking debut “Satisfaction is the Death of Desire” and chart-conquering breakthrough “Perseverance” are widely regarded as the jewels in the band’s anthemic Hardcore crown, however their respective follow-ups, 2003’s “The Rise of Brutality” and 2006’s “Supremacy” are undoubtedly of equivalent (and I would argue in some cases superior) quality to those classics. Both see small but significant evolution in the band’s sound and both are rammed to the gills with thugged-out PMA floor fillers that have cemented their legacy as one of the modern era’s greatest Heavy bands, regardless of genre. Punk Rock snobs beware – you’ll find no sniping or elitist flexing from me over these next few paragraphs, if you can write gigantic hooks and never stop kicking my head in, you’re an elite-tier band in my book.
Following the massive success of “Perseverance” would have been a monumental task. On that tour cycle the band branched out from their predominantly Hardcore roots and picked up wave after wave of new fans from the Metal community, helped massively by high profile support slots with Slipknot. It makes total sense, then that “The Rise of Brutality” sees the band leaning into their more Metallic influences more than ever before, coming across like Madball channelling Slayer. That’s the kind of combo that makes me a danger to myself and others. Throw in the debut of Zeus in the production chair, adding a more Thrash-flavoured heft to the sonics and the album can be seen as the dawning of Hatebreed really finding their feet and consistency.
The obvious place to start are the iconic setlist mainstays that have inspired many an ill-advised tattoo job and torn vocal cord. ‘This is Now’ is what gang vocals were invented for, an explosive burst of can-do attitude that has a half time that would make anyone in a circle pit complete their daily step count in the space of 35 seconds. The fact that it is so deep into the album’s runtime shows a steel-balled confidence in the consistency of the material here but we all know the album’s mega hit happens a little earlier on.
‘Live for This’ with its spiky chugging groove is the ultimate seize the day mantra. Like the greatest pep talk you’ve ever had, Jamey Jasta adopts the role of the life coach we never knew we needed and makes you want to run through a brick wall to realise your goals. Its genius lies in its pure simplicity both lyrically and compositionally. I would posit there’s actually infinitely more skill in writing something stripped down and direct that connects with the listener immediately than any of your widdly guitar heroes and their convoluted concept albums.
Revisiting the album also reminds me that there’s a wealth of equally brilliant deep cuts that have been low key running on a loop in my head every time I think about the topic of Hardcore and moshing (which is quite a lot). ‘Straight to the Face’ often jumps into my head like a bizarre Pavlovian response every time I read the word ‘brutal’ in passing. Chuck in absolute ragers like the monstrous ‘Another Day Another Vendetta’, which wholesale plonks the first verse of Sick of it All’s ‘Just Look Around’ into its structure and you have the recipe for Hardcore Heaven.
Incredibly “Supremacy” arguably tops its predecessor on every level. Lyrically things take an even darker turn as Jasta uses his own personal tragedies and struggles with mental health and addiction to fashion defiant hymns of turning pain into light and positivity. None more explicitly realised than on opener ‘Defeatist’ which may hold the title of the fastest most searingly aggressive song in the band’s history. The Thrashed-out verses and warp speed bellowing chorus are the stuff of broken collar bones, and the slowed down mosh section at the end has probably sent the children of many a chiropractor to college. Once again Zeus is the man in the producer’s chair and the balance of Metal and Punk is struck perfectly from the opening chords.
‘Immortal Enemies’, ‘Never Let It Die’ and head-nodding lead single ‘To the Threshold’ are all absolute worldies that never let the lyrical darkness envelope the sense of life-affirming joy the band has made their signature, but if we’re honest with ourselves the narrative of “Supremacy” is dominated by one song: ‘Destroy Everything’.
Taken allegorically it is a song about making drastic, positive change in one’s life regardless of how painful and jarring this can be. Taken literally, it’s about destroying everything. Having watched everything get destroyed many a time when I’ve seen Hatebreed live, it very much seems that the fans err more towards the literal definition of the song. If ‘I Will Be Heard’ is the first thing you show someone that wants to know what Hatebreed sound like, ‘Destroy Everything’ is definitely the close second. In fact I think it’s a vastly superior song and it’s one of those heavily-played songs that never wears out its welcome, the anti-Sandman if you will. The fact that I can’t not picture the viral video where the song accompanies a compilation of cats just being dicks endears the song to me even more!
As always with Cherry Red’s releases it comes lovingly packaged with new cover art and excellent liner notes that put the releases into context for the uninitiated, making this a pretty decent Hatebreed starter pack. While the band have continued to pump out quality fist-swinging content in the ensuing years, these two records are arguably the ones that cemented their legacy, removing all ‘flash in the pan’ doubts and rubber-stamping Jasta and the lads on the Hardcore Mount Rushmore. So tie that bandanna tight, get your two-stepping boots on and dive straight into the pit with two of the finest heavy albums of the 2000s.
‘DESTROY EVERYTHING’ (cats being bastards version!)
TRACKLISTING:
The Rise of Brutality
01. Tear it Down
02. Straight to your Face
03. Facing What Consumes You
04. Live For This
05. Doomsayer
06. Another Day, Another Vendetta
07. A Lesson Lived Is A Lesson Learned
08. Beholder of Justice
09. This Is Now
10. Voice of Contention
11. Choose or Be Chosen
12. Confide in No One
13. Bound To Violence (bonus track)
Supremacy
01. Defeatist
02. Horrors of Self
03. Mind Over All
04. To the Threshold
05. Give Wings to My Triumph
06. Destroy Everything
07. Divine Judgement
08. Immortal Enemies
09. The Most True
10. Never Let it Die
11. Spitting Venom
12. As Diehard As They Come
13. Supremacy of Self
14. Pollution Of The Soul (bonus track)
LINE-UP:
Jamey Jasta- vocals
Sean Martin- guitar
Chris Beattie- bass
Matt Byrne- drums
Frank Nobinec- guitar on Supremacy
LINKS:
Disclaimer: This review is solely the property of Rory Bentley and Ever Metal. It is strictly forbidden to copy any part of this review, unless you have the strict permission of both parties. Failure to adhere to this will be treated as plagiarism and will be reported to the relevant authorities.
