Incredibly heavy and hard to define, Long Island, New York’s Buckshot Facelift have been assaulting the ear drums and puzzling the noodles of fans and critics alike since 2004. Drawing from a veritable mish-mash of influences that includes (but is in no way limited to) grindcore, death metal, hardcore, and even doom, this power-violence five-piece cranks and crushes their way through every live and in-studio performance, much to the chagrin of many a misunderstanding music journalist.
But if you sift past the cacophony, the tongue-in-cheek sarcasm, and the intermittent political ponderings, what you come to discover is a band that is genuinely greater than the sum of its parts. Sneakily smart and vehemently sophisticated, Buckshot Facelift have returned with their seventh studio recording, the full-length Ulcer Island; and although this D.I.Y.-style act may not be consciously seeking out the fame and adoration of the metal-loving world, this fifteen track ripper of a release may just garner Buckshot Facelift a whole lot more attention, regardless of whether they really wanted it to or not.
Ulcer Island is brutal, belligerent, and breathtaking. Sometimes grating, sometimes grinding, and always going for the jugular, Buckshot Facelift have brought forth an album that is as intelligent as it is intense. Starting with the hardcore title-track opener, “Ulcer Island”, the band introduces you to who they are and where they’re from right off the hop, combining punk-style distortion and drumming with grindcore vocals and sensibilities. Other stunners on Ulcer Island such as the thrash-grind mashup “Ascend to Descend”, the abbreviated death metal screamer “Sundress Skeletor”, the doom-inspired “Dustification (End Times version)” (which also features a clever sample from The Princess Bride), and the sardonically sensational closer, “A Trophy Cup Intoxicant”, stick out as my favorite tracks on this phenomenally trenchant album.
Buckshot Facelift’s Ulcer Island is officially available on April 14th, 2017, so be sure to wrap your ears and your minds around this paradoxical opus as soon as you’re able!
FFO: Napalm Death, Nasum, Pig Destroyer, Everything Must Die
Genre: Deathgrind/Experimental Metal
Album Lineup: Zorg, Fergus, Fleece, Meta(1), and Uncle Buck
Ulcer Island Track Listing:
“Ulcer Island” (2:37)
“Czech Yourself” (0:45)
“Afterbirth Puzzle 2016” (0:44)
“Ascend to Descend” (2:47)
“Burn the Baby Raper” (0:33)
“OxyDocs” (2:34)
“Sundress Skeletor” (1:26)
“Comptroller Cult” (2:43)
“What Does Fergus Dream Of?” (3:15)
“Hell Eats Repetition (Goodbye)” (Instrumental) (3:29)
“Don’t Hang From the Pipes” (3:13)
“Weathered Mask of Autumn (Unearthing the Armless)” (3:07)
“Delusions of a New Age” (4:22)
“Dustification (End Times version)” (3:41)
“A Trophy Cup Intoxicant” (5:18)
Check out Buckshot Facelift here:
