COLISEUM
No Salvation
(Relapse)

TERHEN
Eyes Unfolded
(Firebox)

OXBOW
The Narcotic Story
(Hydra Head)

THESE ARE:
Scare Tactics
(Hold True)

TOMAHAWK
Anonymous
(Ipecac)

CAPITAL
Homefront 

(Revelation)

GET BACK UP
Weathering the Storm

(Organized Crime)

MORE REVIEWS

At the other end of the spectrum when compared to the sounds of Crime in Stereo is Buffalo’s Get Back Up, whose hardcore is much more stiff and traditional but not for that less lethal. I have been very outspoken about how most hardcore is fucking boring because a number of traditional bands, especially those coming from New York, adhere so strictly to the parameters of the genre. Get Back Up certainly does that, but at least their music is superior to most in execution and in songwriting. Weathering the Storm follows the band’s Symptoms of Failure 7”s and it features nine songs of pretty well-executed violent hardcore. From what I hear Get Back Up is heavily in the vein of Comeback Kid and Have Heart; both of which I haven’t actually heard before.

The bad news is that Get Back Up run out of steam by the sixth song, “An Empty Sky” actually contains all the trademarks of the genre. Angry vocals, communal chorus and breakdowns all are included to shape up a pretty generic song. Too bad because vocalist Mark Bratcher is certainly working hard at it; his voice sounds like is about to give in any second now. His impassioned and, at times, gut wrenching delivery is worth of admiration. And to a degree Get Back Up does deliver when they please; “Reunion” sort of carries that same feeling of uniting the troops for a common goal. Its guitars carry a marching spirit that the band should try to replicate more often. In the end though, I get the feeling that Weathering the Storm could have been a bit better.

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