When Syracuse hardcore heroes Earth Crisis called it a day in 2001, there was little left for them to accomplish. Their vision of zero-tolerance straight edge and vegan lifestyle left little moral wiggle room, and the imposing sound they crafted to spread their gospel could not possibly get any heavier. The chugga-chugga rhythms and floor-punching breakdowns that borrowed heavily from SOUTH OF HEAVEN-era Slayer re-made hardcore in Earth Crisis’s image for the '90s, a hellish grind for troubled times.
With an even more perilous geopolitical climate, the time could not be better for a reunion, and Earth Crisis is ready to oblige with 2009's TO THE DEATH. Punishing new songs like “To Ashes” and the thrashing “Control Through Fear” find singer Karl Buechner and company fully raging like they never left. Those looking for introspection or musical adventure can look elsewhere, but for lean, furious metalcore with an uncompromising message, this is it.
Rovi
90年代以降のシーンに多大な影響を与えたニュー・スクール・ハードコアの元祖が、ついに再結成して神懸かり的な新作を投下。余計なギター・ソロもビート・ダウンも排除し、ひたすらミディアム・テンポで押し切るその姿には失禁寸前! 流行りもの病にかかったメタルコアやデスコア勢を蹴散らすかの如く、いままででいちばんへヴィーなサウンドに仕上げている。己の信念の赴くままに真っ直ぐ突き進め!!
bounce (C)塀戸門家
タワーレコード(2009年05月号掲載 (P80))