Indecision/Shai Hulud 

The Fall of Every Man (Revelation)
by Tim Den

More than anything, I wanted to hate and bash this release. Why? Because the world of hardcore has dished out so much useless garbage (mostly metal rip-offs) in the past few years, I’ve almost completely lost faith in everything HC besides my old favorites (and even those bands are losing their steam). So why should I feel differently about a split EP by two bands I never really cared for? The answer lies in the key word “EP.” With three songs from each band (Indecision gets a fourth, but it’s not an original – it’s a cover of SSD’s “Glue”), the disc runs just long enough for me to enjoy what these bands do best without choking on excess testosterone. Shai Hulud plays melodic, technical scream-core that’s part Deadguy, part Hot Water Music, and part Fat Wreck punk. The mixture is actually quite enjoyable, considering they never let you hang on any one riff too long before shifting gears and doing something completely different. Indecision, on the other hand, stick with the Snapcase-esque formula of HC, but gain ground on their own by not watering down the songwriting. The riffs are heavy, the tempo is perfect for all them karate experts in the pit, and there’s plenty of “fuck shit up!!” gang shouts to point your fingers to.

So until I can throat more HC than I’d like to, I’ll stick with this split. It’s just enough meat for the barbarian in me, and it ends quickly enough for me to come to my senses and go watch soap operas.
(PO Box 5232 Huntington Beach, CA 92615)