Hounds of Hate Promo Cassette (Demo Dogz #2)

Release the hounds

Hounds of Hate popped up on my radar this time last year when I was contributing a little more regularly to an indie rock blog and looking for submissions. Despite the "this was recorded in a cave full of wet macaroni" recording quality of the demo, the cool mix of slow-ish, dirgey oi-inflected straight edge 'core wet my whistle, enough to snag the No Redemption 7"quicker than snot sliding on brass door handle.

While this isn't exactly a demo, it is a teaser for the upcoming LP (that's apparently already been written!), featuring three new bangers and a re-tooled version of of "Brotherhood of Night" from the first demo tape. 

Artwork is simple, and works great for the tape. Old english fonts can't ever really get overused in the 'core, so no complaints there. I'm feelin' the way that spine would look on a shelf.

Tunewise, they've really stepped up the proverbial game from the 7". Recording is crisper and vocals still hit with a gravelly power. "Pride" has the illest break, and "Clean Today" has great subject matter, namely junkie-scum butt getting a hard dose of edge reality (reminds me of the real life spoken word intro of that one Rollins Band song that I can't remember the name of right now). Comparisons to Sick of it All still seem apt, but so do some of the other second-wave NYHC bands along with Life's Blood and any of 'em with a little bit of skin-savvy in their braces.

Verdict: Fiendin' for the full length. Catch them on tour.

Buy it before you steal it.