We Cater to Cowards

Metal-by-way-of-noise band Oozing Wound manage to get even more caustic than ever before on fifth album We Cater to Cowards, bringing more sarcasm, anger, bitterness, and bile-choking social commentary to their unique brand of heavy music. The Chicago act have long kept themselves intentionally outside of circles of metal that seem a little too self-serious or constricted by rules of style and genre, opting instead to keep things weird and unpredictable. This contempt for conformity (even within the would-be lawless realm of metal) is doubled down on with We Cater to Cowards, the groups most snarling and sardonic work yet. Oozing Wounds roots in Chicagos noise scene are apparent in the bass tones alone (which sometimes sound more like a broken oscillator than a stringed instrument), but those roots also come through in the ugly murk that coats the mixes on tracks like "Old Sludge" or the creeping stagger of "Crypto Flash." "Hypnic Jerk" cant quite decide if its thrash or hardcore, with blastbeat verses melting in and out of repetitive thuds. While the lyrics are hard to decipher, themes of isolation and existential terror come through on most songs. Singer/guitarist Zack Weils acidic vocals start off enraged on brutal opener "Bank Account Anxiety" and just get more annoyed and bloodthirsty from there, sounding at times like a somehow even more pissed-off Dave Mustaine. As they did on 2019 album High Anxiety, Oozing Wound experiment with instrumentation not normally found on metal records throughout We Cater to Cowards. Buried among the squalls of feedback are horn parts that sometimes lurk in the background and sometimes jump out jarringly. Heavier than ever, Oozing Wound find no resolution or peace with these songs, but continue banging their heads against the wall in beautiful fits of rage and exhilaration. ~ Fred Thomas