Vancouver hardcore here, keeping the torch alive. From the opening sample of a healing charlatan preacher on “Crying Demons,” Heavy Chains are intent on exposing the ugly and confrontational, swimming in the channel between dissonant post-punk and angular early-‘90s hardcore. As with other current post-hardcore updates, this one leaves the music mostly intact and instead twists up the vocals (a la Minneapolis’ Skoal Kodiak). The watery garbled vocals of “Stoned Stripper” seems designed to be impressionistic, anticipating a lead singer rolling in the audience Yow-style rather than leading the band (although the singer is actually bassist Andrea Lukic of local heroes Nü Sensae). “Insane Pain” goes even further, simply yowling over a hammered-out chord progression. The B-side’s tunes treat the vocals similarly as a sort of call to arms, with heavy riffing at different tempos. This would be a great band to see live.
