100ANDZERO | 4
(Independent)
100andzero.bandcamp.com
I've long maintained that 100ANDZERO is the best goddamn band in the city of Beacon, and 4, their second full-length release, amply secures their dominance while expanding their reach in bracing new directions. With most songs clocking in well under three minutes and with precisely zero ballads, 100ANDZERO forge limitless variations on an OG hardcore template. Guitarist/vocalist Jim Zellinger and bassist/vocalist/recording engineer Jed Marshall unleash squalling, free-noise overtures on "Give In" and "FAT So"; pile-drive riffs like the sick, diminished-scale chorus on "Fail You"; and do more with two agitated notes on "Bow" than some bands do with entire albums. It's all fearsomely powered by drummer/former Buddha Hero Mark Pisanelli, invigorating each track with unsettling precision and fire. DIY with a vengeance, this is the perfect antidote to pandemias of ignorance and poser outrage. Truth comes marching in on 4—deal or kneel, punk.
