Band:	With Abandon
Album:	Maturation
Style:	Deathcore
Website:	http://www.myspace.com/withabandonmusic
Release date:	November 23, 2009
A review by:	Thryce

01. The Brave!
02. Go At Your Own Pave. That's What It's There For!
03. Swingtime Is Good Time And Good Time Is Better Time!
04. There Never Was An Aaron!
05. Shit, I've Been Shot!
06. You've Got To Decide Whether You're A Wolf Or A Sheep!

Mathcore/Technical Hardcore/Deathcore
Recorded: Germany 2009
Unsigned/Self-released
Total Running Time: 23:04


Now this is the kind of twisted nasty shit I've been after. Unorthodox and intelligent enough to leave you open-mouthed. Technical-hardcore-something, maybe slightly resembling older War From A Harlots Mouth. Harsh enough to beat the living you-know-what out of you. But maybe that's because the band features ex-War From A Harlots Mouth vocalist Steffen Winopal, so there you have it. When you were least expecting it. But With Abandon is equally thought-out, somewhat slower, slightly darker and kind of meaner. Not because they want to. With a couple of unsurprising but not uncomforting deathcore influences too. But because they can. A weirdly evolved kind of hardcore with a lot more complexity, if you must. And it waits for you.

The sound - or better: seemingly endless string of breakdowns - bears an unabashed sense for progression and a healthy dose of pretention. Violence! Luckily that same sound is also all about being robust and mature. Rage! Yet it's fresh enough to stand on its own merits. Distraction! And you just know not everyone is going to like this. Smash-em-up! Making it all the more interesting for me. More breakdowns! Because I like being trapped in these delightfully disfigured song flows. Puzzling!

Executed with herculean force and precision. Heavy-as-fuck distorted guitars. And an undimmed hardcore-toughguy attitude. Prominent bass lines and powerful drumming. Yet with more than enough sense for rhythm and melody. Hardcore shouts, insane screams and all kinds of harsh though understandable vocals. The indecipherable ADD rhythm patterns. Music that is probably more impious than you can handle anyway. Are heralding the coming of the apocalypse. So that each song looks like a patchwork of cuts and pastes of what seems to be five or seven, possibly even twenty-eight different tracks...

...Still everything fits tightly together.


PS: With Abandon is offering a free download of this EP. Pause your fetish porn downloads for a sec, and check out this link.