Condemned?

It's been so long since hardcore crossover outfit Condemned? issued something new that many people have forgotten they held the moniker long before the death metal act. While that's not about to change with extensive effort Condemned 2 Death, at least those of us who missed their bastardized take on pairing S.O.D.'s rumbling thickness/NYHC essence with riffs presumably pilfered from long-forgotten Nuclear Assault rehearsal tapes have something to get giddy over. Picking up exactly where they left off, the album's 14 tracks gallop through everything from halftime bouts of Agnostic Front brutality to hyperactive shots of borderline thrash. That is, when the quartet aren't overcome by some sort of Biohazard affliction that results in tracks such as "Cleansing Pool," with its meandering pointlessness. Making up for the mistake, "Emotional Blurr," "Aggressive System" and more showcase the band's inherent elements of formative d-beat, barrel-chested hardcore and punk. Rounded out by a bonus 31-track career-spanning disc, featuring debut effort Humanoid or Biomechanoid and more, Condemned 2 Death isn't going to create a new faction of followers for Condemned?, but at least us nostalgic sorts can rock out.