Label: Terminus Hate City
Date: August 16th, 2024
“Just one more before I head on my vacation”, said I, while setting off a meaty pounder named “The Pursuit Of”. And when I thought this will be an easy one, being a debut album, lasting less than twenty two minutes, a declared hardcore release, I stepped on a landmine. The worst kind, when you ask any reviewer. An album which is impossible to write about at length. Not because its own length, but because everything about such sound has been told and retold countless times.
Still, the album is quite good, so the need to do my part in spreading the word remains, however tricky it might be. I’ll start with the band’s own description of “hippie hardcore”. I cannot altogether agree with that one. Granted, I haven’t received the lyrics with the electronic promo kit, but what I did get from the frantic screams doesn’t exactly fit into the piece and love ethos. I reserve the right to be wrong here. On the other hand, the music Yosemite In Black delivers is absolutely universes away from the sunny side of life. This quartet brings about utter devastation of hardcore fused with metal. Little is left to imagination in a style like this. Very much where the genre originated, right about Machine Head or even Pantera, Yosemite In Black adds only a few distinct flavors. In a strict musical regard, I completely agree with the following sentence from the band’s own presentation: “Blending sweet riffs from Heaven with breakdowns from Hell”.
The riffs in question might not be the most inventive or imaginative around, but they are also far from those purely derivative. Easily swerving between the heavy hardcore riffs and nasty thrash metal ones, they’re neatly getting along with the said breakdowns. With those, Yosemite In Black have a tendency to even go further. Slithering down to sludge areas, the band is increasing already overweight song structures. The production work that put an emphasis on lower registers, did quite a number on the rhythm section. Okay, I wouldn’t mind a bit more fat on the drums, but with that type of bass guitar, you likely won’t even notice it. As proven on the closing, most sludgy of them all, “Fade Out”. Fade out it did!
However, the majority of the album deals with tough hardcore. With metal being a key add-on. Along with the mentioned giants of metalcore, Yosemite In Black could be your top new pick if you’re a fan of Hatebreed or Earth Crisis. Yet, it needs to be mentioned that they are lacking a defining tune which will set them apart. The genre in question has suffered immensely since the late nineties and getting it back on its feet is a task and a half. This kind of albums is the right way to go, since it carries enough energy and charisma to keep your ears glued to the speakers, but I still consider “The Pursuit Of” only a stepping stone. To make a clumsy pun, the pursuit is there, no doubt about it, we’ll just have to wait and see what’s the pursuit of. A redefining and reviving soundscape or an endless loop.
