POLAR. - Iron Lungs Album Review
A seething piece of work that’ll have others running for cover before they get smashed aside.
rating: 4.5
Facebook Released: May 7th*
Big beats. Strong booze. Loose morals. Good times. Doesnt sound like a half bad existence, does it? I suppose thats the Bukowski in me, though. Anyway, youre greeted by these taglines on POLAR.s Facebook and judging by some of their photos they do, indeed, know how to party. Example:
The band have been honing their craft and mastering their drinking technique for a fair few years now and have hit the bars while theyve been on tour with the likes of It Prevails and Heart In Hand, destroying the venues at the same time with their brand of intense, uncompromising hardcore. This blend of sound has also managed to get the band an audience from the likes of Rock Sound, Big Cheese, Kerrang!, Metal Hammer and Front. Even Scuzz has joined the party, with the bands video for Tonight Matthew I Am The Batman (from their debut, This Polar Noise) being featured on their late night programme, Metal Midnight Mass. I dare you to come in from a night-out and not find the video completely warping: http://youtu.be/wwULPwpfFow On the back of the success that This Polar Noise was, the band have now recorded the follow-up: Iron Lungs. Theres been a considerable amount of justifiable hype surrounding the release and a lot of people have been (im)patiently waiting, and rightly so. This Polar Noise showed the band to be not just another band to join the ever-growing list of UK hardcore bands POLAR. ripped that list up, chewed it up and spat it back out. A fresh band on the hardcore scene was here, ready to tear you a new one and they really meant it. Iron Lungs, thankfully, lives up to the hype. The snarling hooks; frantic, raw vocals; crushing breakdowns; and greedy rhythm is still there, but now its more magnified and at a refined level that shows the band have definitely grown since their debut but have also managed to hinge the sound of their debut onto an even more abrasive sound thats about as addictive as it gets. http://youtu.be/rnjpA6TvXgg Eighteen explodes with a jarred, fluctuating riff that underpins the drums like some sort of hunting trap. The riff bites and drags you away but as its also hauling the drums out of the beartrap thats made the drums play along as if its their last dying breaths then the riff leaves you go while it teases the drums. Its then up to vocalist, Adam, to grab you by the face and not let you go until the tracks finished. You can imagine him screaming into your face at a live gig here such is the quality of the recording that it really does bring the live aspect out thats a strong part of the bands make-up. Bruiser has a roving bass-line with a dark, grooving riff thats really hard not to nod along to. The drums are as well-structured and frenetic as ever, and when the guitar solo comes in that just makes you want to snarl your upper lip the drums are still pattering away in the background adding more rhythm to that particular section. The riffs soar and plunge straight back down, giving an effect of bottomless ecstacy with unswerving verve and anarchistic attitude. Possibly the darkest track on offer. The title-track serves as a well-deserved respite from the cauldron of uncompromising sound that POLAR. stir so well. Its an ambient affair that shows the bands ability to create a textured, slow-burning track rather than an in-your-face, instant pick-me-up. If anything, the track verges on ambient metal and wouldnt sound out of place on a *shels, Pelican, Explosions In The Sky or even Devil Sold His Soul record. Its a track that could, and probably will, soundtrack one of those nights where you just want something to pass the night away and will play away while you lock yourself away from the world, rather than something thatll cut your head off and feed it to the dogs. The final track, For King And Country, has the line, what doesnt kill us, makes us stronger and although some may think that this is an overused, almost cliché phrase then listen to the track and youll find that its used perfectly. Alongside the general heaviness and intense vocal style youll find yourself singing/screaming/talking/gargling/whatever the line back at the band. This album shows POLAR. as a band who can live up to the hype. Their brand of no-frills, tight, passionate hardcore should see them as one of the next bands to emerge from the UK hardcore scene, dragging you out of the mire with them. Theyve stamped their way through it, and now they have this seething piece of work thatll have others running for cover before they get smashed aside. http://youtu.be/AYuwJLhaoSM