ALBUM REVIEW: Only One Mode – Speed
Word of advice: don’t trust anyone who doesn’t like SPEED. The Sydney five-piece are pretty much the embodiment of all that makes hardcore so exciting at the moment, and while there are far too many great bands out there to throw words like ‘biggest’ and ‘best’ around too carelessly, there is no question that these Aussies have earned their place among the leaders of the pack. Their debut full-length Only One Mode is surely the most anticipated pure hardcore release of the year and it has no trouble living up to all the hype that surrounds its arrival.
The thing about SPEED is it’s not just what they do – brilliant though that is – but the heart with which they do it, the love that’s poured into it and the charisma that flows out of it and the gigantic grin it promises to leave on your face once it’s done. Only One Mode is fun but never silly, uplifting even when its lyrics get serious, and above all a glorious celebration of the genre and community the band have made their home in. You can say that’s a bit gushy or abstract for what is essentially just a load of riffs and breakdowns and gang vocals, but conviction and intent make all the difference in music like this and SPEED have never made any secret of theirs.
From this flows an absolute masterclass in heavy hardcore, with every track right down to the shortest Only Foes… just waiting to knock the wind right out of you. The size and swagger of it all is ridiculous, matched at every turn by the sheer magnetism of vocalist Jem Siow who continues to find ways of working the band’s own name into far more songs than he doesn’t (the gleeful “SPEEEEED” in seventh track Send Them 2 Sydney probably takes the cake if we’re ranking them). Not that you’ll need any reminding of who you’re listening to though; while definitely indebted to a long list of legends before them, at this point SPEED have developed a style and identity that feels unmistakably their own.
It’s not just knuckledragging either – not that it would be a problem if it was. There are flashes of flair like the killer lead work from guitarists Josh Clayton and Dennis Vichidvongsa, or the occasionally more melodic backing vocals that help turn a track like No Love But For Own into a clear-cut highlight, or of course Siow’s flute work in the album’s ubiquitous second single The First Test that ultimately all make Only One Mode a more dynamic and engaging listen even as its tight 24-minute runtime hardly requires the help.
There is range in the lyrics too; the aforementioned Only Foes… explores Siow’s experiences of marginalisation as an Asian-Australian (“Fuck feeling foreign in my own home”), this flowing naturally into The First Test’s emphasis on inclusivity and empowerment, while Kill Cap right after those two is a heartfelt tribute to a friend that took their own life (“Who’s that demon in your mind that made you follow through?”). Yes, much of the rest of the album is about the usual stuff – like how much the band loves hardcore, or how little time they have for fakes and posers and all the rest – but it is in these moments of vulnerability that SPEED again show that there is more to them than might first meet the eye.
Because it all comes back to paragraph two really; heart, conviction, charisma, honesty – these things are far harder to quantify than how much a riff rips or how hard a breakdown hits, and they simply cannot be manufactured. Only One Mode is a great hardcore record in musical terms alone – a real ass-beater if you will – but it is elevated further still by the immense personality of the band behind it. SPEED are the real deal, that much has been clear from the beginning, and this LP should and no doubt will be remembered as one of the defining records of a truly fantastic era of hardcore.
Rating: 9/10
Only One Mode is set for release on July 12th via Flatspot Records/Last Ride Records.
Like SPEED on Facebook.