Band:	Simbiose
Album:	Trapped
Style:	Crust punk, Grindcore
Release date:	March 16, 2015
A review by:	Ilham

01. Intro
02. Ignorância Colectiva
03. Acabou A Crise, Começou A Miséria!
04. "Deixós" Falar?
05. Infant Gas Mask
06. Abismo?
07. Trapped
08. Modo Regressivo
09. Será Que Há Morte Depois Da Vida?
10. Consciencialização
11. Don't Play Dead
12. (A)pagar?
13. Fallout
14. Quem Vai Ganhar?

Who the hell ever complains about grindcore songs being too long?

I do. Preposterous you'd say. But when the genre is about making a strong impact in a short amount of time, only a few techniques are left to brand the mind of the listener: be fast and ... - yeah what the hell, I'll say it - furious. If that doesn't work, you're doing it wrong. I remember some vaguely famous scientist said that the definition of insanity was doing the same thing over and over again while expecting different results. Which leads me to conclude that Simbiose are either collectively suffering from severe short term memory loss or are just bat-shit crazy.

Now, now, my big love for grind along with my frequent use of sarcasm could lead you to believe I'm biased and/or joking, but believe me, there can be finesse and variety in grindcore. Unfortunately, Trapped is quite devoid of those two qualities. Which unfortunately ruins all the numerous positive aspects of this release. Everything here sounds quite professional and well executed. It's the least you'd expect from a grind/crust band formed back in 1991. And Simbiose deliver more than just the least: I still hear the energy as well as the aggression that this particular blend of punk sub-genres needs to have in order to just... work. Indeed, if taken individually, these tracks are honourable representatives of the big family. If you did a DNA test on this particular specimen, you'd find yourself looking at a sheet telling you that Doom had a child with a Portuguese hooker - couldn't find a more suitable image to say this Portuguese formation likes to make things groovy. Whom, in turn, not feeling well in its shoes because of its pair of fuck-up parents, the said offspring broke bad and started playing grind.

Yet, after a few tracks, and especially after several spins, I can't get to grow the necessary love to adopt the troubled kid. The incessant repetition of a particular set of words in exactly the same vocal style over and over in numerous songs just drives the concept of a chorus into the fucking ground. As if to cement the impression of repetitiveness, the whole shebang is relentlessly lashed with drums that rarely deviate from the least creative d-beat patterns. At this point it's not driving things into the ground, it's deep sea oil drilling. Now you understand why I opened this rant by saying these songs felt too long.

I am - adorably? - flawed and not exempt of errors of perception. This might just be me fixating on a couple of minor defects, but it honestly ruined my experience, and as much as I can force myself to be fair, I wish to remain true to my impressions. The irony of it all is that I just signed my most repetitive review to date. Irony is such a bitch.

I strongly recommend you to listen to this record here, where it is streaming in its entirety for free. In return, you'll get a free pass at attributing me the derogatory qualification of "bitch" at the end of the constructive comment explaining how you liked it. Who knows, it might help me enjoy Trapped a bit more - the constructive comment, not the abuse. And if you didn't like the album, well, too bad for you. I made you listen to some grind. Win-win. For me, that is.