AFTER THE FALL – Eradication (Mightier Than Sword): I never gave this full-length a proper review in 2010, but late is better than never has it has proved to have remarkable staying power at Pastepunk HQ. Not-so-quietly, this upstate NY trio has upped the anger element in its brand of melodic hardcore, and Eradication is a 25 minute festival of rippin’ music. Directly or not, AFTER THE FALL have summoned up the mental and aural fortitude of bands like GOOD RIDDANCE and BIG WIG (the latter years), but have compressed the music into a tighter, less forgiving style. An I-SPY cover of “You Don’t Talk No Shit” caught me by surprise, but it makes plenty of sense that I-SPY in an influence here. Eradication is a dependable kick in the ass.

MOCK ORANGE – Disguised As Ghosts (Wednesday Records): MOCK ORANGE pretty much lost me on their last couple of releases – I just didn’t have the patience to work through their FLAMING LIPS’ style meanderings and softness. It was such a stretch from their aggressive post-hardcore/emo Lobster Records beginnings that I didn’t even connect the two bands anymore. Disguised As Ghosts doesn’t exactly reverse course but in a case of addition by subtraction, the group has dramatically cut down the song length, and suddenly MOCK ORANGE seems all focused and kind of mathy again. Tempos uptick, natural guitar and banjo sounds buzz with energy and the vocals linger a tad longer. I’d still refer to this off-hand as “indie-hippie-dippie” stuff, but a new sense of urgency keeps the band from wandering too astray.

ELYSIUM – Inspired Hatred (Divebomb): As I’ve written before, metal-reissues label Divebomb Records almost never disappoints. Coming in blind to just about everything the label has touched, I can rest assured that if Divebomb is reissuing it, it’s worthy of some renewed attention. ELYSIUM was a Florida death metal band in the mid-to-late 80s. Inspired Hatred was their only notable release, and at that, it was only a demo, but one of very high studio quality. Twenty-two years  later it has been rescued out of relative obscurity, and it’s a wild ride – part thrash, part tech-metal, and one very, very exuberant vocalist. Perhaps it’s an ill-fitted comparison because ELYSIUM is nothing but metal, but the band shares a lot of similarities with today’s acrobatic emo/screamo ADHD-addled musicians, where tempo changes are a bloodsport, layered, schizo guitar riffs are common, and vocal theatrics are a given. Like chugging down a machine cog for breakfast…