ALBUM REVIEW: Colony Collapse – WVRM

It must be a bit strange quite literally being the only grindcore band on the block. But then again, unless you find yourself in a bustling scene, most grindcore bands stand as islands in their musical community. For WVRM, the only other band of similarly significant volume in their area is NILE and as such their punishing assault has been left to be created free from other influences from a local scene. Instead of external creative inputs, the band has turned their ire towards the constantly changing and frequently infuriating political climate and the genuine struggles that come with being working class. And not just working class, but a working class that lacks upward momentum.

Their newest release Colony Collapse is a furious and explosive attack at the status quo. From the opening barrage of Walled Slum City it’s clear that WVRM have a musical sound akin to a stick of dynamite exploding in your face. Taking aspects of doom and sludge thanks to their life living in southern American states, the guitar and bass tones WVRM utilise are thick and heavy, less a buzz saw and more an industrial sized boring machine. War Promise//Successionville shows the bands vitriol towards to the ruling class, with the rallying war cry of arming those lost in the shuffle and being sent to the fight. This is music for the disenfranchised and the truly pissed off.

The vocals are putrid and fantastic, ranging from the typically wretched vocal style of classic grind and taking it to a logical conclusion with guttural noises also making up a fair portion of the vocal assault. Tracks like Tank Reaper show just how dynamic this approach can be, and how effective it can be in instilling an empowering feeling of wanting to take a bat to the system itself. It of course helps that the musical bedrock of Colony Collapse is just as dynamic, taking cues from genre masters WORMROT and their seminal Voices record. Jumping from flat out 30 second ragers like Hands The Bear The Hive to more fleshed out tracks like Thorn Palace and Angel of Assassination, WVRM further prove that grindcore can indeed be a versatile and malleable sound in the hands of bands who know what they’re doing.

The title track oozes atmosphere and creative exploration, taking further notes from acts like CONVERGE in its use of weird sounds, structure, and pacing to deliver a song that stands out as one of the most unique on the record. It further cements the sentiment that WVRM are indeed one of the best grind acts in the world at the moment, and the fact they have created this monstrous record in near enough isolation from what most would call a scene. WVRM are their best critics, and the confidence that emanates from every track on Colony Collapse is testament to their talent and drive.

Whilst bands like PIG DESTROYER and the aforementioned WORMROT don’t need to prove anything to anyone, there remains a bit of a vacuum for new grind bands to take the limelight and prove the genre is still alive, well, and relevant. Colony Collapse is a 14-song bomb that possesses the best grindcore that’s been released over the past few years. If you need something visceral and pissed off, this is it. And it aims it’s anger directly at the ones who continue to keep everyone down beneath their boot. There isn’t a better time for WVRM to release this record.

Rating: 9/10

Colony Collapse is out now via Prosthetic Records.

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