Coliseum

(Level Plane)
by Ari M. Joffe

This five-piece out of Kentucky plays angry music tailor-made for letting loose in the pit at some dingy club. For the most part, their sound is fairly standard hardcore (growled vocals, driving beats, and crunchy riffs). Between the pummelers, Coliseum wisely incorporate a bit of dissonant two-guitar interplay on cuts like “Give Up and Drive” and The Obsessed-style doom (“The Simple Answer Is”) to keep things fresh. They aren’t the most precise band around, but that’s cool. It just gives the music a populist feeling. These dudes could be banging away in that garage down the block where all the teenage skaters and their older biker brothers hang out. Even if they don’t display jaw-dropping virtuosity, they’re solid musicians playing well-written, honest songs about disillusionment, despair, and outsider pride. Heavy stuff!
(www.level-plane.com)