End It – Unpleasant Living
Release Date: 8th July 2022
Label: Flatspot Records
Bandcamp
Genre: Hardcore
FFO: Leeway, Gut Instinct, Maximum Penalty.
Review By: Ryan Payne
Baltimore City Hate Crew. That’s the general theme and aggression behind End It and their latest release, “Unpleasant Living”. The total run time of the whole record is just about 10 minutes long, but it’s enough to show you that these boys aren’t messing around and are here to make waves. Every track is an absolute punch to the face as the band smash through the record with aggression and speed, coming at the listener with thrash metal-esque riffs, complemented with some incredible old school hardcore beatdowns.
We start off with the opening track “BCHC” which begins with misdirecting the fans with a very unexpected intro before driving straight into the carnage. Vocalist Akil Godsey delivers an almost rap approach in this song which had me thinking I had this band sussed from the first track, but as you’ll read on, I was glad to be proved wrong. The latest single “New Wage Slavery” is up next and kicks off with speed, accompanied by the vocalist delivering a very clean yell before devastating the track with the verse. The end of the song slows down the tempo and creates a more destructive finish that hardcore fans are accustomed to.
“L’apelle Du Vidde” was definitely a head turner, as the vocals for the first quarter sound like they came straight out of Iron Maiden’s arsenal. It definitely wasn’t something I was expecting to hear from a band under the hardcore name, but they made it work, and it’s twists like that that’ll make End It stand out from the crowd. The rest of the song keeps up with the regular vibe throughout before ending with a movie quote that marks as the breather before the next track, “21”. This 40 second track is a constant descent of tempo, making the track sound heavier as it goes on, before ending with a 90’s sounding hip-hop outro.
Another single from this record, “Hatekeeper” is just another testament to why these guys are smashing what they’re doing. The riffs and drums continue to pummel through this song, while the vocalist brings out his aggression, delivering every line with so much energy that you can’t help but be enticed by it. The final track “The Comeback” is not only the longest on the record, but is also a personal favourite of mine. The main reason for this is because it feels more structured than everything that came before it. Everything from the guitars to the vocals sounds a lot more thought-out, rather than just a quick 1-minute burst of complete carnage.
End It have a very definitive sound that some would assume was probably a bit dated now, but with the added elements from the vocalist, i.e., the rap and power metal elements, give this record and band a cutting edge from most of the hardcore bands trying to replicate the same sound. The length of the songs would normally bug me for being too short, but in all honesty, it works with the amount of energy they put into each song. “Unpleasant Living” comes out the 8th July and any hardcore fan will enjoy this record. 
(3 / 5)
