The Weight We Carry - Vol. 2 - Evil Record Review
The Weight We carry is a group that has shifted over a relatively short stretch, changing personnel as well as sound. After some lineup shifts the band ended up with former guitarist Paul singing vocals, and Nate from Such Gold notoriety stepping in on guitar. What started as a more modern hardcore venture changed gears and adopted styles and sounds from many eras of heavy music, effectively creating a unique blend of influences from different eras. Thus, "Vol. 2" was born!
The opening track titled "Nothing" starts off with a siren and a nuclear guitar riff. A slow churning rhythm gives way to a destructive gallop to the gallows, dancing between half tempo and full time feel. A brief respite in the form of funeral-esqu bass and feedback drone. This gives way to an even more chaotic and thrashy feel on "Bite Back". The thunderous assault gives way to more half time feel, and eventually a brief slower break. "Meantime" opens with a more bass driven midtempo feel, not unlike some 90's mainstream industrial metal sounds. The track then jumps to a double time chug that evokes some similarities to the mid to late 80's NYHC sound. In the last third, the track jumps back to the trudgey 90's feedback, which eventually gives way to a more palm muted driving rhythm. Ultimately, the track creaks to a halt with an ultra-brief breakdown closer to the modern standard.
For "Desolation", the band returned to an up-tempo feel, before trading back and forth with a half time beatdown. The last 20 seconds of this track win the award for angriest segment! A dirty feedback signal gives way to a buildup, which ultimately leads to a slower cadence that features some slick tags at the end of phrases. Some interestingly off-kilter drum and bass interplay leads into some more of the bass driven feedback space, which itself evolves into some previously unheard stop/start guitar ideas that also feature feedback.
The final track "American Dream" opens with an audio clip that seems to poke at the idea of American money being inherently dirty. Some distorted guitar rhythms with vaguely funky undertones give way to a vamp that morphs a hair toward a more straight sound when the vocals come in. Another rhythm change around the minute mark continues at an angry pace until a more feedback driven groove morphs in the album's final, and possibly heaviest riff. One final guttural growl from the vocalist puts some punktuation on this record. HAHAHAHAHA I SAID IT.
As a music fan and punk at heart, I would have to say that "Vol. 2" is a genuinely respectable effort, with good intentions and good ideas to fund the experience. I would have to recommend this release to fans of 80's hardcore and thrash, as well as fans of the more modern sound, ideally people who exist somewhere in betwixt. If I had to assign an Evil Score, I'd have to say that "Vol. 2" from The Weight We Carry earned 10 guttural screams out of 9 blast beats. Physical copies are available from our good friends at Sore Ear Collective! Check them out, along with some social links for The Weight We Carry.
Sore Ear Collective - Facebook
The Weight We Carry - Vol 2. Physical Copies
The Weight We Carry - Vol. 2 EP - Soundcloud
The Weight We Carry - Facebook
The Weight We Carry - Bandcamp
Stay true to yourselves people! Stay evil! Stay tuned!