Greece’s Minerva Superduty Deliver Powerful Caustic Hardcore On Fresh New LP

In Public — the latest album from the Athens, Greece-based hardcore/ screamo group Minerva Superduty — feels riveting.

Stepping into the world of the record feels like suddenly arriving at a chaotic, harried punk show unfolding on a crumbling street in the rain. The sheer force of the energy on In Public feels exciting — throughout the album, Minerva Superduty really don’t let up in any major respect.

Critically, the energy feels richly dynamic thanks to a ton of poignant flourishes that Minerva Superduty have tacked on to their wall of fiery riffs. There’s a real personal touch in the music, which helps the experience land even harder.

With the strikingly poignant melodies that the group has interwoven into their songs at moments like the softer segments of “Saturday Night Cure,” Minerva Superduty have placed inwardly rejuvenating energy at the core of their formidable sound. Their album carries a definite haggard edge, with a hardcore abrasion in the guitar tones and consistently rather confrontational rhythms, but there’s also an emotionally resonant streak of nicely freeing sonic catharsis throughout In Public, like a soundtrack for running through the pouring rain and basking in the energizing emotional freedom of the situation.

There’s a real push-and-pull on the album — the poignant melodies don’t particularly detract from the rather formidable heaviness with which Minerva Superduty have built the world of their songs, and both sides of this equation feel amplified by the band’s rather relentless energy. In Public‘s imprint is strong. The entire record feels brisk, with particularly standout moments of heaviness on “Modern Love” and “Urban Development,” among other impressive highlights. At times, there’s a blistering, somewhat blackened edge in the music, as if the group is hanging on the edge of an abyss and just barely throwing themselves back up over the clifftop.

The dynamic swings throughout the music give it an air of real desperation — Minerva Superduty capture a poignantly rich surrounding journey to and from the blasts of energy that they’ve put on display, rather than sticking to a smaller musical palette. Some of the rhythms feel rather breathable, giving a sense of space in which to move within the music while the sonic lightning strikes keep on coming down.

The album feels like a poignant, inviting celebration of raw energy.

5/5 Stars

Listen to In Public below!