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This Routine Is Hell

Repent. Repeat. EP

Written by: PP on 11/09/2012 03:33:10

This Routing Is Hell are a small hardcore/screamo hybrid from Utrecht, Holland, who are in the process of defining their musical identity on their latest EP "Repent. Repeat". It features six tracks divided into two sides (hence the title), which showcase the band exploring two vastly different, albeit still somewhat connected styles. To start out with, the band crashes and burns through first two tracks "Without Spirit, We Roam" and "Repent. Repeat." in just about two minutes in a fiery hardcore/punk flurry that recalls both Paint It Black and Gallows ("Grey Britain" era). It's pissed-off, angry, and full of the kind of urgency and immediacy that Converge shows up with to every show and every album they play.

But then, the band takes an unexpected shift towards airier sound on "Shine", which starts off with similar hardcore energy, but then breaks out into ambient lulls that allow the guitars some space to breathe, resulting in beautiful melodies that put a ton of focus on the screamed out lyrics. Sounds familiar? That's because it's a similar throwback to the 90s screamo scene as Touché Amoré, Weak Teeth, or My Fictions have been prominently showcasing as a part of 'the wave' style hardcore/punk lately. It's an exceptional track with focus placed in just the right moments to highlight the great lyricism and the coarse, but understandable delivery of their vocalist, and one that leaves this scribe wondering why there aren't more tracks like it on the record? Sure, "Repulse" and in part "The Loneliness Of The Long Distance Runner" come close, but imagine if the whole record was like this?

That's what This Routine Is Hell need to think about for their next release. That sense of experimentalism, whether it's a direct parallel to the original screamo bands of the 90s or connected to the current modern resurgence of bands sounding like melodic versions of that, is what adds the extra bit to their sound that makes it stand tall instead of just being moderately good aggressive hardcore. Both styles work, the slower, more melodic and more contemplative sound is just a lot better. Lets hear more of that on the next record.

Download: Shine, Repulse,
For the fans of: Touché Amoré, Weak Teeth, My Fictions, Paint It Black, Gallows
Listen: Bandcamp

Release date 12.04.2012
Shield Recordings