Hurtlocker

Embrace The Fall (Napalm)
by Scott Hefflon

Chicago’s Hurtlocker toiled in the metal underground with so little national recognition for so long that their brand of thrash is dirtier, harder, and heavier than most. While most scamper about in the “fun area,” with speedy riffs and silly lyrics, Hurtlocker is borderline death a lot of the time. And again, while most thrash revivalist stick to the umpa-umpa polka beat, Hurtlocker breakdown hardcore-style (there are some near raps here, and I usually hate hardcore raps) and death-flutter over blastbeats. Meaning that while, sure, a lot of the songs follow the same template as every thrash song ever written, there are some brutal bits to flatten your chest. Seeing as this is only the band’s sophomore release, you can hope for a long, varied, and heavy as fuck future from this fivesome.
(www.napalmrecords.com)