Shipwreck A.D.

While firmly rooted in new school hardcore, Boston’s Shipwreck A.D. aren’t afraid of a bit of metal. Check out the "Seasons in the Abyss” rip-off intro to "Miasma” for some pure metal fury, and the double-bass chug of opener "Squall” is a great way to get this album rolling. But for most of this album, the band prove they could work their way up to the top of the modern hardcore heap — although Modern Life Is War they aren’t, they clearly have the energy and dedication to become runners-up. The vocals are sincere and while they threaten to get monotonous, manage to sound great throughout the whole disc. Good stuff, but it starts to drag even with its short 30-minute running time, which is more an inherent fault of the genre than anything to do with the band. Maybe they should incorporate some of that "nu-jazz” their MySpace page jokingly claims they play to help spice things up a bit.