DoC faves Total Fucking Destruction are back to fuck with fans and haters alike. An album with as much deconstruction as destruction, #USA4TFD takes aim at the Trump administration and right wing jingoism with the same irreverent humor and unpredictable stylistic shifts that these grind O.G.s have made their M.O. The digital release includes the band's most recent EPs Monsters and Our Love Is A Rainbow, making this a must have for old fans, as well as a good starting point for new ones. Make grindcore great again. [$5.75]
Like Misery Index, Seattle's Theories have the chops of death metal veterans (as you'd expect from a band formed by members of Black Breath and Book of Black Earth), but never belabor the point. Their sophomore album Vessel is chock full of finger cramping riffs and occasionally flirts with some syncopated grooves, but makes speed its priority - keeping the album moving but never monotonous. Restraint is a rare but admirable quality in death/grind. [$10]
Count on L.A. trio Skullsmasher to get straight to the point. Their first full-length Rocket Hammer Brain Surgery pays tribute to their city's grindcore history, reverentially emulating the frenetic simplicity of Terrorizer and Phobia (not to mention Repulsion, whose "Festing Boils" is covered here). If the band doesn't have their next release planned, may I recommend a split with their East Coast counterparts Skullsplitter? [$9]
Black metal and crust punk was a trebley crossover waiting to happen, and the mysterious Totaled are its latest exponents. Their debut Lament weds blastbeats and minor key riffs with crusty chord progressions, uniting the bleak minimalism and all around pessimism of both genres. A rising blackened crust tide will lift all copy centres. [$6.66]
