Friday, 16 January 2015

Militant, Grinding, Hardcore Music review: Ultramantis Black by Ultramantis Black: Stabbing, jagged, electric, energising protest music


Label: Relapse records

Released: 8th July 2014

Bandcamp page (listen to, and purchase album here): 
http://ultramantisblack.bandcamp.com/

Check out this awesome official video to the song ‘Bio-monster DNA’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C882d7NfR2U



This album sounds sweaty, and youthful, and righteous, and like it’s being played in a small club with (organic, alcohol free) beer flying through the air that is covering the collected shirtless mass in a sticky wave of good old healthy protest song anger.

What the heck do I know about this kind of music? Nothing, nothing at all, that’s what I know about it. Oh, that’s not true, I do know that it’s called ‘hardcore,’ so I know that. It’s a good adjective to use, as it certainly isn’t softcore, that’s for sure.

It’s punchy, stabby even, and everything is blasting away at a furious pace, the guitar, drums, screamed vocals and the song lengths themselves.

This EP has nine songs on it, and it lasts about thirteen minutes, yet I didn’t feel ripped off, and when I read the lyric sheet I had even more appreciation for it. Themes include the danger of pharmacological drugs, animal cruelty, pollution and the horror that is genetically modified food. Important issues there, real issues, not just the trendy feminist liberal ones, and it’s all shouted out with the anger that you need in rock protest songs.

I purchased this EP because I’m a Chikara pro wrestling fan and the man responsible for this music is one of their wrestlers. I was not disappointed. He rants/sing-screams about important issues, the music is suitably frenetic and having this blaring away in the background at a top volume as I knock out this review gives me that good feeling of energised rebellion that every good protest song should contain. Good stuff Mr Ultramantis Black. This English bloke who knows nothing whatsoever about hardcore music is very impressed with what you have done here on your debut music EP.

Rating: 9/10

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