Retox – Ugly Animals
Somewhat predictably for a band containing two members of The Locust, Ipecac's latest progeny specialise in envelope-pushing musical lunacy of the 100mph extreme hardcore variety. Not as overtly wacky as The Locust, but certainly not po-faced, Ugly Animals clocks in at around a lean (nay, gaunt) 13 minutes and, though that's a comfortable length of time for such an unrelenting onslaught, it’s also maybe a bit of a stretch where full price recordings are concerned.
Fans of Daughters and Glasgow’s own Take A Worm For A Walk Week will undoubtedly get their kicks from this; the musicianship is astonishing, with gloriously subtle little flashes of brilliance throughout. 30 Cents Shy Of A Quarter is an especially rampant monster of a track, likewise Stick A Fork In It, which plays up the bona fide hardcore ancestry of the various members. Considering this band has reputedly only been together for mere months, this is a rather excellent and utterly uncompromising first impression. [Austin Tasseltine]