On their brand new record Barely Buried Love, the Spanish group Crossed deliver absolutely crushing blackened hardcore attacks that are accented by harshly screeched vocals that further amp up the songs’ raging animalistic frenzy, which feels primed and ready to abruptly grab listeners by the throat. These songs feel like the soundtrack to demolition — pick a target, and the fierce energy boiling over in these songs could be enough to knock it over (only barely metaphorically speaking).
The group have combined the completely off-the-edge chaos of gripping, noisy screamo with devastatingly direct melodic hardcore attacks, and the result features that classic beastly hardcore sound right alongside drumming at a psychologically disorienting, frenzied pace, guitar riffs that feel like speedy rounds of sledgehammer hits, and more.
These aren’t just any old meltdowns — the band blast such physical heft throughout their songs that the spastic spirals feel easily physically disorienting. Their sound proves so thick that it’s perfectly hard to resist getting swept up.
The transition from the track “Swallow” to “Colored Pain” feels a bit like the musical equivalent of getting kicked right over the edge of a cliff, and across the board, that energy proves pretty much the rule on this absolutely relentless album. “Swallow” slows down into a grimly regal-feeling procession of drum hits before the energy starts right back up again on the next track. Other jump-out moments include the middle of the song “Scorched Flesh,” which features absolutely crushing, devastatingly direct drum performances that pack both intricacy and absolute breakneck speed. (Seriously, these songs have gotta be exhausting to perform.) The end of the song “Salivate” even features a crushing breakdown, and the tones, like elsewhere on the album, feel thick enough to leave a mark.
The only real “slow” — comparatively speaking — moments on Crossed’s Barely Buried Love feel like they’re delivering an accent to the chainsaw riff-driven main meat of the music and/or simply absolutely necessary considering the physical exertion. The dynamic swings also amplify the regally dramatic darkness at the center of the album, which lingers for awhile.
5/5 Stars
Check out the music below! Crossed features members of Boneflower, Eros + Massacre, and Descubriendo A Mr. Mime. The album dropped February 14 via Zegema Beach Records, the France-based Fireflies Fall, and others.
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