ALBUM REVIEW: Hell Bent – Firewalker
Across the vast continental United States, there are various hotbeds for hardcore. Whether it is New York or Los Angeles, San Francisco or Washington D.C., these population centres have spawned some of the most explosive and vital bands in heavy music. Such is the case of Boston. Albeit the city’s contributions to the hardcore scene are more lowkey, the violent period for the scene in the 1990s gave Boston hardcore an infamous and fierce reputation. Intending to capture this in their brand of hardcore, FIREWALKER return with their first album in seven years; Hell Bent.
Hell Bent is a pedal to the metal, blistering display of frenetic hardcore that will leave you dazed and gasping for breath. Devil’s Favorite Toy stars the record in thundering fashion as a cacophony of blistering riffs and Sophie Hendry‘s larynx-shredding vocals inject bedlam, Carry My Own Torch oozes with swagger and struts at a nice mid-tempo chug, whereas the title track flies at you at 100mph and the guest vocal spot from ANGEL DU$T‘s Justice Tripp gives an already explosive sound that additional firepower to really leave its mark.
Elsewhere, Lit Up With Fire sees the band really snarl as Hendry leads the pack with conviction as her growls ride above the speedy riffs from Cecelia Halle and Sarah King, Limbo roars into life following a momentary guitar medley and boasts a savage closing section where the band hit with the force of a ten ton hammer, and on the likes of Scorcher II and Shackled, drummer Sasha Stroud excels as her performance here keeps the band surging forwards.
In fact, Hell Bent is so frenetic and high-octane, the listening experience can be described as a “blink and you’ll miss it” experience. At just shy of 15 minutes, Hell Bent is short, hammered home by the speed in which FIREWALKER refuse to take their feet off the gas. As a result, the record feels over before it truly begins, just as you’re in the eye of the storm as riffs cascade and smash all around you, it ends. Given it’s been seven years since their last record, Hell Bent‘s short nature is its biggest downfall and it’s disappointing that it feels like there could have been more here, at least another 15 minutes to really allow the band to cement their mark.
The Boston hardcore scene is infamous for its violence, particularly in the early years, and on Hell Bent, FIREWALKER capture the aural violence of those early years. Over the course of its rapid runtime, the band electrify and excite all the same. Despite the meagre runtime, this is a vicious slab of hardcore, one in which further helps to cement FIREWALKER as another band to share the responsibility in keeping Boston hardcore alive and kicking in 2024. The future of Boston hardcore is in safe hands.
Rating: 7/10
Hell Bent is out now via Triple B Records.
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