Review Summary: "Universe" provides a breath of fresh air and a few laughs to boot!
Have you missed the gracious sounds of As The Sun Sets that have so recklessly succumbed to the world of the Daughter's? Well guess what? We've got you an album! The Irish Front displays some serious tech-blast hardcore with vicious spurts of violence as they laugh their way through these fourteen tracks.
The album begins with a gloomy intro destined to spoil, but right after those few seconds we are sucked into a portal of grind and blast beats that groove their way into what reminds the experienced listener of Radiation 4 and Mike Patton's influence on TDEP's "Irony Is A Dead Scene." The breakdowns are evident but thankfully don't dominate the landscape, and as the band sways from one track to the next it is a solid onslaught of chaos mimicked by their need for laughter.
Before we go any further it is crucial to take note of the lyrics and the mockery instilled within them. Just by glimpsing at the track names one would think they are glancing at a Blood Brother's release rather than a mildly aggressive hardcore group. Although the gimmick of these song titles doesn't last for more than a second after a single read through, the pathetic attempt at humor is shadowed by the efforts displayed musically. Needless to say, not one member of this band is older than seventeen.
Reminiscent of Night's Like These debut album, the guitars churn back to back with low end hammer-ons and pull-off's. The shrieks and dissonant chords blurt out from speaker to speaker and the chugga chugga goof off jigs are placed only in peak positions if hardly at all. A key note here is how quickly they transition from melodic death to a smooth clean strum. These guys aren't Yngwie or even Waggnor from the highly acclaimed BTBAM, but they can cut their chops in a decent and efficient manner. The bass however, does not exist.
The drummer of the outfit is a total animal. In fact, I even envision Animal from the Muppets as I listen to this. His wild bass drum techniques can speed up to intense speeds that make Paul Bostaph quiver. All around he carries an impressive performance and his jazz influence stabilizes the chaotic flow of the album. As The Sun Sets is probably as close of a comparison to the techniques explored here. The beats mesh with the ripping guitars as they saw together in harmony. The combination in essence, is definitely solid rock out.
The vocals vary from a deep guttural, to a shrieking scream, to a light sing, to even a melo-drama opera technique displayed in "Monsterbation." This is where Radiation 4 comes to mind, who was an eclectic hardcore outfit back in 2004. On "Boom, Snap, Clap," you will even find a mild child-like sing along, which in my opinion, is a total blast for all ages. If you are to showcase this band to anyone, this would be the track to define them. Short, super heavy, and a total laugh riot. "Suck Fart Tootorial," however could have been left off the album entirely.
The songs are generally really short and the impact each song makes leaves you ready for the following track. The cd is tracked perfectly and the flow of the album is natural and all in all makes for a really solid and enjoyable listen. If you didn't like See You Next Tuesday's latest, you might want to give this a shot. They don't claim to be progressive experimental grind, yet the ferocious approach carried throughout the comedic relief is a wave of experimentation flowing through this rotting metal scene churned by the younger kids eating up Space Jam hardcore like Emmure and Liferuiner.
