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Miozan

Surrender Denied

Written by: MAK on 11/07/2017 17:06:01

German hardcore outfit Miozan were once part of the old school elite that tore up Europe in the early 90s, having toured with high calibre bands such as Agnostic Front in their heyday. After ten years of heavy touring, Miozan called it a day, which considering the average life expectancy of hardcore bands, that’s still an impressive run. The odd special occasion drove Miozan to reform with no intentions to make it permanent, yet the success of one show in 2014 ignited the fire in the band to make this a true comeback and release their first album in seventeen years, "Surrender Denied".

The theme for the album came from the bassist, Frank’s fight with cancer and how he didn’t surrender to it. The album is about his health experiences, though Miozan has always been a political band with that making a strong impact on the songwriting. Musically the core sound of the German outfit is somewhere between hardcore and skate punk, showcasing that old-school SoCal influence instead of the modern beatdown style. It’s not violent, it focuses more on the upbeat tempo and energy.

The self-titled track, “Surrender Denied” is a huge anthem for the album, with great crunchy riffs, fast beats and countless sing along hooks. “Reach Out” is a raw hardcore punk hit, it’s gritty and the gang vocals in the intro give you the idea that this will be incredibly fun to sing along to live. “4 Chord Truth” stands out about as punk as it gets on the album, with Pennywise style guitar rhythms that stick in your head, dirty distortion and gravelly shouts topped off with relentless energy that make it a stand out track.

After about five or so tracks in, you pick up on the one-dimension sound that floods the album, but that makes this album no less enjoyable. It’s just simple, angst-ridden yet fun. The most hard-hitting track on the album is perhaps, “Light Up The Stake”, which pulls in the most “hardcore” vibes with vocals that are more aggressive, and punchy riffs. The guitar melodies at the end remind me of “Does This Look Infected?” era Sum 41, though.

“Surrender Denied” is a nice introduction to Miozan for me and likely a whole new generation of hardcore fans; it just oozes the true spirit of the genre. The core sound stands out like a sore thumb compared to the likes of genre leaders Terror in terms of lacking real vicious intent like most modern hardcore bands, but at the same time, these pioneers of European hardcore still fit in right at home with the rest. They have not lost their hunger in the slightest and I can imagine their shows are just as chaotic now as they ever were.

Download: 4 Chord Truth, Light Up The Stake, Surrender Denied
For The Fans Of: Wisdom In Chains, All For Nothing, No Turning Back
Listen: facebook.com

Release date 13.01.2017
Demons Run Amok Entertainment