Review Summary: You're no higher power.
New York Hardcore in the 80's and 90's was a special thing. They had the rise of bands like Agnostic Front, Youth of Today, Cro-Mags, Antidote, and most importantly Madball. Subzero were part of the early 90's New York Hardcore scene, however, members of the band were involved in the late 80's as well. What Subzero manages to do well is take influence from aforementioned bands and incorporate some of the heavier and groovier aspects bands were doing during that time period.
Happiness Without Peace starts off with one of the best tracks on the record 'Higher Power.' Fusing elements of Breakdown and Cro-Mags with excellent results. Hell, even frontman Lou Di Bella even sounds identical to John Joseph from the Cro-Mags. HWP excels when they go for the throat and don't let up. MRP has a ton of groove and chunky riffing that fans of Turnstile could appreciate. Karma Geddon is the band at their most Mags-esq. It's these songs that really showcase how good Subzero can be, unfortunately, there's a lot fo 90's stuff on this record that has not aged well.
'*** MTV - I Want My NYHC' is absolutely atrocious. It's interesting to see a band callout MTV, but stumble around to make a song that was obviously trying to get onto said program. The tracks following this are incredibly bland. 'Movin' On' has some interesting melody, but the clean singing ruins what could have been a good song. 'America The Ungrateful' feels tone-deaf in it's delivery of peace. A vaguely political song that sounds as if the band wanted some of that MTV money. These songs bog down what could have been considered a classic of the time period.
Fortunately, this record really picks up towards the end. ‘Once and For All,’ ‘Behind The Mask,’ and the nine minute closer ‘Ice Age’ showcase the bands best aspects. ‘Ice Age’ starts off as you would expect, but, starts to dirge into something akin to Alice In Chains without sounding contrite. Fans of Higher Power could easily digest this song and be satisfied with what it sets out to accomplish.
So does Subzero stand out in the pantheon of New York Hardcore? To be honest, no. That does not mean you should pass on this record. Its influence is obviously heard in bands like Trapped Under Ice, Turnstile, and Higher Power. The story of Subzero itself is also interesting and inspiring with singer Lou overcoming cancer twice. Happiness Without Peace showcases the best and worst of what the hardcore scene was transitioning to in the 90’s.
