Review Summary: Anger as an aesthetic.
God’s Hate are pissed,
I think. The gnashing, thrashing beatdown riffage splattered across their self-titled LP would seem to suggest so, though I’m not
entirely convinced. Maybe it’s the obvious intentionality behind their reprisal of snotty 90s Troy-core that imparts their latest effort with just a hint of insincerity, smacking of a calculated retelling of the anger of another generation rather than a spontaneous rebellion of their own. Indeed, given that the band’s co-founder/vocalist moonlights as a professional wrestler, it’s perhaps unsurprising that their sophomore
performance feels somewhat
staged. The thing is though, I’m not sure I
really care, and, quite frankly, neither should you. Despite the mildly-manufactured edge to their sound, what’s far from fake is this:
God’s Hate by God’s Hate is goddamn, goshdarn
fun.
The building blocks of the Californian 6-piece’s sound are easy enough to list off: truculent schoolboy lyricism (check),
‘uge monster-truck riffs (check) and more goofy TV samples than your average Aborted record (double-check). Thankfully, however, there is much more to God’s Hate’s wayward house of hXc than meets the eye. Not only is their playing incredibly tight - multifaceted riffs wrapped tightly around machine-gun drum-work, warping from breakdown to solo to chorus without skipping a beat - but each song benefits from an
actual audible structure (
wow, who’d have thought?!). Modern hardcore’s growing tendency to senselessly string breakdowns together is completely disregarded, with God’s Hate favouring an antiquated but satisfying return to a
verse-chorus-verse-‘oh-shiiii-it’s-time-to-windmill’ framework. The controlled demolition of “Six Feet Deep” and “Eternity of Hate” is an excellent case in point, each barnburner rattling through whammy-bar solos, indignant chugging and invigorating sing-along hooks at breakneck speed whilst remaining headbobbingly accessible. It’s textured and nuanced without sacrificing an iota of the meatheaded aggression that makes their return to that much-maligned chapter of hardcore so satisfying. There’s even a nod to straight thrash on the nastier moments of “Violence Unlimited” and “War Man”, both sticking staunchly to their lane of sweaty hardcore whilst paying due respect to the group’s more metallic influences.
Sporting such poetic musings as
“Remember you should be fucking dead, bitch” and
“Life is hard, be harder”, it’d be easy to write off
God’s Hate as a tacky throwback to an outdated, outmoded sound. Give it a moment, however, and the lads’ latest outing reveals itself as one of the most entertaining romps of 2021 so far. Smothered in cheese it may be, but a welcome blast from the past it surely is, one no doubt as heart-pounding and eviscerating as anything those GODDAMN
whippersnappers are churning out these days. Sure, it ain’t
new noise, but it is still noise, and, if you ask me, that’s pretty hard to
refuse.
