Review Summary: Fuck the Facts continue pushing the grindcore envelope with one of 2015’s best metal outings.
As you can infer from their name, Canadian grindcore band Fuck the Facts don’t mess around.
Desire Will Rot is another exercise in their flawlessly executed brand of ferocious deathgrind with a slight melodic tinge, fleshing out the sound of last year’s well-crafted but criminally short
Abandoned EP. The songs are back to ranging from one-and-a-half to three minutes, with a few notable exceptions I’ll get into later. Sonically, comparisons to
Converge’s magnum opus
Jane Doe immediately come to mind. The vocals are screechy and unbridled, and the production somehow feels both gritty and sharp, emphasizing the filthy bass leads (which elevate any song they’re in) while keeping the riffs laser focused with rigorous crunch.
Every development on
Desire Will Rot is executed with precision and perfection – the arpeggiated sweeps on ‘La Mort I’ are breathtaking, as is the seamless transition into its viciously discordant counterpart ‘La Mort II’. Hardcore influences are scattered about as well, namely in ‘Shadows Collide’ where the simplistic punk beat serves as the driving force behind the song. Even the shortest tracks contain some of the most daring ideas on the album, such as the unpredictable yet cohesive ‘Prey’ which hints at melody for a brief moment while an aura of dirty feedback lingers in the background, anticipating the blast-beat ridden onslaught to come. The following ‘Storm of Silence’ embraces a melodic hardcore angle with some of the most passionate screaming and clever chord progression combos to be found in modern grindcore.
The final three tracks are where things get interesting (even more so). The almost 6-minute ‘False Hope’ begins in a high-speed hardcore fashion before finishing off with a doomy, hypnotizing outro and one of the best riffs on the album. This leads into the penultimate ‘Circles’, which is borderline minimal by Fuck the Facts’ standards. It’s entirely atmospheric – ominous background singing, quiet eerie melodies drifting in and out, subtle hints of piano and strings, and ear-piercing feedback providing a droning noisy blanket encompassing it all. At almost 8 minutes, ‘Circles’ makes the most of its runtime by exploring the primal side of music making while simultaneously setting up the grand finale ‘Nothing Changes’ – the album’s doomy swan song, fit with a closing riff that flirts with a major key; a concept that sounds odd on paper, but in execution it makes for one of the most effective wildcard metal closers I’ve heard in a while.
Desire Will Rot is a must-listen for genre fans, and also serves as a fine starting place for newcomers willing to broaden their horizons. It has a little bit of everything, including anything you could possibly want in a modern grindcore record. Fuck the Facts aren’t softening with time –
Desire Will Rot is a prime example of classic genre tropes sprinkled with just enough experimentation to beckon repeated listens for proper aural digestion. Believe me, your ears will be thankful.
