Hardcore supergroup World Be Free — which features members of Gorilla Biscuits, Strife, Judge and is fronted by Scott Vogel of Terror — have made a powerful call back to the early days of hardcore with their debut LP, The Anti-Circle.
The five-piece eschew the brooding of modern hardcore but retain all of its energy, combining it with a more optimistic sound that's reminiscent of youth crew bands from the late '80s. From the self-titled introduction of the album, hyperactive power chords dominate the greater part of each song, reinforced by Vogel's signature yell, which shifts into clean singing during many of the choruses. It's jarring at times, but engaging nonetheless.
Walter Schreifels (of Youth of Today, Quicksand and Gorilla Biscuits) lends his vocals to the melodic outro of "I'm Done," an upbeat, stripped-down blast that characterizes the album perfectly. World Be Free trade technicality and compositional complexity in order to capture the raw, outright aggression that was the '80s hardcore sound, and they've done an admirable job of it on The Anti-Circle.
(Revelation)The five-piece eschew the brooding of modern hardcore but retain all of its energy, combining it with a more optimistic sound that's reminiscent of youth crew bands from the late '80s. From the self-titled introduction of the album, hyperactive power chords dominate the greater part of each song, reinforced by Vogel's signature yell, which shifts into clean singing during many of the choruses. It's jarring at times, but engaging nonetheless.
Walter Schreifels (of Youth of Today, Quicksand and Gorilla Biscuits) lends his vocals to the melodic outro of "I'm Done," an upbeat, stripped-down blast that characterizes the album perfectly. World Be Free trade technicality and compositional complexity in order to capture the raw, outright aggression that was the '80s hardcore sound, and they've done an admirable job of it on The Anti-Circle.