A18 “Forever After Nothing”
Well this is a change of piece – Victory puts out some good ol’ straight-forward hardcore, done by California scene veterans who’ve been around the block with many a band. “Forever After Nothing” is a 12 song assault made up of mostly mid-to-fast pace slams, that feel strongly dated, but not in a bad way. The crisp, but hardly polished production gives this that authentic old-school feel (with a great sounding bass drum), and the gruff vocals scratch with hardened sentiments. At times, I’m reminded of a less dynamic IGNITE, or more contemporaneously, KILL YOUR IDOLS without the guitar burn. This disc lacks the requisite energy to really achieve notable status, but the occasionally slow tempo does infact craft some vicious breakdowns. Strong back-up vocals show up in all the right places, and that definitely helps in getting the listener into this record. Lyrically, the band is caught in some dark, personal issues, as indicated by song titles including “Scars Upon Scars,” “Bury Me Breathing,” and “With Kind Regards.” Admittedly, the moodiness gets a bit trite by the disc’s end (which is only 30 minutes or so anyway), but the verbal content matches the booming musical front rather well. A18 didn’t knock me off my feet with this release, as a few too many of the songs sound inconsistent in sequence, but fortunately, a few gems make me want to keep this thing around. If anything, it’s good to see Victory placing some spirit on a pure hardcore release again. Now what about that new DARKEST HOUR record?!?!
Victory
