Podcast: Download (Duration: 1:19:48 — 182.7MB)
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Yo, how’s it going residents of the murky void? This time Ryan and I promptly eject ourselves into a hazardous deadly gulch. Yep, we got another brutalizing episode for you all! These dudes from my hometown of Santa Cruz, CA have been making a name for themselves in the hardcore scene. You may know them as Gulch and they have a relatively new (July 2020) album called Impenetrable Cerebral Fortress. It’s gritty, noisy, and downright put your head in a wind turbine destructive. At one point in the episode, I believe I say something about getting ripped to shreds in a gorilla pit? The usual From Corners Unknown nonsense.
One quality of the band that we comment on quite a bit is the well-placed input of “ughs” and “bleghs”. The vocals are shrill and utterly nasty. They pair well with the heavily distorted thrashing guitars, ear attacking feedback squawks, and skull cracking drum beats. Shit, there are moments where you just get hogtied into a groove and can’t help but embrace the oncoming train splattering. This is hardcore you play fucking loud and only loud. There’s a reason why you see everyone comparing this band to brick punching or other pain-inducing experiences. There are moments that make me think death metal, old school hardcore, or thrash but it’s genuinely something greater than the sum of its parts. Get into the gutters of California hardcore and flop around in the gnarly filth. You will not be disappointed. Also, that Siouxsie and the Banshees cover as the final track? Incredibly cool stuff.
Gulch has existed since the year 2016 with members from bands such as Drain (California Cursed is another solid hardcore release from this year) and Spinebreaker. They have released a few EPs such as Demolition Of Human Construct (2017) and Burning Desire to Draw Last Breath (2018). Impenetrable Cerebral Fortress is their first full-length album and it was released on July 24, 2020 through Closed Casket Activities. Now find your nearest amp, shove your head in it, and blast some Gulch!
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If you dig what your ears just ingested well go purchase the album on Bandcamp. I’ve failed to locate any social media to support these guys on (good for them), but there’s some Kansas band of the same name if you wanna check out whoever the fuck they are!
Also, if you’d like to support us beyond listening to our podcast, you can do so by becoming a patron on our Patreon page. There you can read all of our notes for each album review episode we publish, gain early access to every episode before its official release.
If you’re keen on chatting music, shooting us some recommendations, or talking about other forms of media (videogames, films, etc.), please feel free to join us on our Discord server! Next week, we return to the fold of dark ambient and chat about the Cryo Chamber debut, Exo, from Tineidae.
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