Hope Conspiracy

This band is one of Boston’s brightest lights and they are probably beyond happy that this disc is being released, even if it is basically a re-release of their first seven-inch, with one new song and a cover. This band has found their momentum snatched out from under their Chuck Taylor’s the past year or so with a guitarist and drummer departing, touring a record that, while an awesome collection in its own right, is almost two years old and was only about half an hour in length to begin with. And along comes Bridge 9 to stop the bleeding with an excellent stopgap measure. "No Love Goes Unpunished,” the new one, is an awesome construction of hardcore and melody, while the cover of Naked Raygun’s "Treason” is absolutely brilliant. Their early material leans a bit too much on the meathead side of things — not that they’re mimicking Hatebreed or anything, it’s just that which makes THC their own entity hadn’t yet been fully discovered and/or exploited, although the track "Escapist” shows the beginnings of an ear for melody.