The turn of the century was a different time for hardcore. It was a time for introspection and activism from some of the genre's heaviest hitters. Many bands built reputations for practicing what they preached, a message of self-empowerment. As time elapsed, hardcore's positive messages became buried in its sands. The ideology, while not forever lost, clamored for a hand to pull it from memory's shifting tides. Salt Lake City's Crow Killer has become that helping hand. The Utah quintet is making their debut this week through their first EP, Becoming an Object of Fear. Metal Injection is fortunate to bring its many readers the full premiere of this nostalgic blast of hardcore today.
It is fitting that at a time in the United States marked by turmoil and tension, a band like Crow Killer steps in to oppose widespread negativity with a positive message in their music. This six-song release is marked by ebbs and flows of sampled spoken word and fervent metallic hardcore. Crow Killer's evocative rhythm of classic breakdowns and barking vocals carry the momentum following the dispersed moments of prose. Their intensity is matched by their poignant lyrics that tackle sadness and angst with persistent hope.
The opening track, "The Great Dictator", is a sample from Charlie Chaplin's 1940 film of the same name. The memorable speech delivered in opposition to the tyranny of dictatorship. Becoming an Object of Fear builds following Chaplin's feature to an emotional crescendo in the album's fourth song, "Soul Remission." The peak of intensity and poignancy exemplified by a subtle melody that appears throughout the song. As the album begins to descend towards finality, "Sometimes" begins with a stirring quote about fear from Daniel Day-Lewis' character in Gangs of New York, Bill "Butcher" Cutting. The album concludes on one final roar in the form of "It Comes In Waves."
Crow Killer's debut is worthy of a great number of listens from fans of hardcore longing for an older sound. The group channels early Obituary and Martyr AD and delivers a message of soul searching that anyone can take solace in. Becoming an Object of Fear is released this Friday, December 9 through Glory Kid Ltd. Preorders for the album can be found at this location in various formats. Crow Killer is on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Make sure to follow them in some capacity to keep up with the happenings of the band. They will be doing a show at the For The Children Fest in LA this weekend (December 10-11) as well.
