Burnt By the Sun

Burnt By the Sun's debut EP instantly marks them as a band to watch in the hardcore/metal/grindcore underground. They simply tear through the four tracks here, each one a quick-hitting maze of blasting grind sections, mid-tempo grooves, tempo changes, and odd time signatures. The guitars have the same sort of discordant, angular quality that you can hear in fellow New Jersey bands like Dillinger Escape Plan, Human Remains, and Discordance Axis — fittingly, since Burnt by the Sun contains members of the latter two bands — but there are also a few stray death metal-style riffs and other curveballs thrown in. Drummer Dave Witte's contributions stand out — his power and dexterity are exceptional — but vocalist Michael Olender is equally notable: he is an incredibly intense screamer as well as an intelligent lyricist, especially when you compare his work with the stream of consciousness diary-entry nonsense that often shows up in hardcore lyrics. (You'll have to consult the liner notes, though, since his unusual style of enunciating makes it sound like his tongue has just been cut off). At eight and a half minutes, this disc is short, but it does everything you could ask for from this type of release: it strikes quickly and repeatedly, it ends before you can finish asking, "How on earth do they do that?," and it leaves you wanting more (and/or begging for mercy). That is to say, fans of the genre(s) should not miss out on this despite the brief playing time.