When I first heard this album, it was a revelation. Everyone has that moment when music gives you a visceral reaction. This album put a rock inside my stomach, then made my head swim. I'm a fan of mixing genres. Hardcore punk hasn't interested me since my early college days. I find it sloppy, directionless and full of pathos. It's pure emotion. High Tension take that pathos and the energy and mix it with razor precise post-punk guitar. The result is something that grows with the combination of parts, something that reveals more depth on each listen.
When this album came out in the spring of 2014, I thought I was hearing the album of the year. Even after the first cursory listen, I knew I was hearing something special. High Tensions music section is direct, pointed and loud. They insist you listen to what they have to play, and they tell you with every note. Their singer is a Malaysian screamer named Karima Utomo, who is just as good at screams as she is at death metal growls. Someone, these two styles work together, and work together extremely well.
Watch this band. They might very well disappear into the sludge and obscurity they came out of, but they'll still be there somewhere.
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