The opener on the Brass Caskets side is a slow, metal-tinged hardcore track. The riffs are down tuned and heavy, but the guitar sticks to interesting chord structures that make the riffs a lot more unique and memorable. Political, Orwellian lyrics and samples make up the ideas conveyed on both their songs. Cold Snap are a little bit of an odd fit, as their sound is a little more on the Level Plane style screamo side. The riffs are bleak and haunting, but the songs are still legitimately heavy, and the structures hold up really well. I don’t typically spring for splits featuring two bands I don’t know anything about, so this was a nice surprise to find in my review pile this month.
–Ian Wise (Redscroll)