Embedded Files
PRO-PAIN “Stone Cold Anger”
PRO-PAIN “Stone Cold Anger”
By Dr. Abner Mality
About damn time! 11 years was long enough to wait for the return of one of hardcore’s best. The drought is over and if you thought PRO-PAIN was pissed before, wait until you hear “Stone Cold Anger”. But who can blame them? The world was already starting to circle the drain when they got their start 35 years ago and in 2026, it’s down the drain and in the septic tank. We need PRO-PAIN in these times.
This is the band we all remember, based on bare-knuckled riffs and vocals that sound like a badger with its foot in a trap. It’s an easy formula and at a couple of points here, it does sound a little bit too easy. But you know what they say about things not being broken! The boys get right back into it with a triple pronged attack of “Oceans Of Blood”, the title track and “March Of The Giants”, each of which have the patented PRO-PAIN sound in spades. Gary Meskil has never sounded better…or meaner! The seething rage in his vocal attack often carries the music above the material. Rhythm guitarist Eric Klinger is back, too, and helps it all sound like a well oiled machine.
The best two tracks here are the ones that go outside the box a little bit. “Uncle Sam Wants You” might just be the catchiest, most upbeat tune these guys have ever done. I ain’t kidding, I was headbanging like a fiend to the bouncy riffage and cool vocal lines of this one. It’s one of PRO-PAIN’s all time best! Also noteworthy is the closer “The Sky Is The Limit”, bolstered by cleaner and more melodic vocals that give this song just the right touch of hope…something in short supply elsewhere.
The rest of the album is the PRO-PAIN we know and love. “Demonic Intervention” and “Rinse And Repeat” are just a ad on the formulaic side but are only minor bumps. I was very happy to see “Stone Cold Anger” in my promo list…it’s the perfect cure to the endless bullshit being dished out daily by our fascist government.
Report abuse