It seems like every year a new, incredibly talented metallic hardcore/noise group comes into the fold or gains some much-deserved mainstream recognition. Last year we were treated to Great American Ghost, 2014 found Expire wowing us with Pretty Low, in 2013 Hessian released their debut Manégarmr, and before that, all the way back in 2012, Code Orange came onto the scene with their awesome Love Is Love // Return to Dust album.
While we still have six months left of 2016, I believe that Germany’s Throwers will prove to be a future powerhouse of aggressive hardcore, with their debut Loss setting the foundation of their reign as hardcore royalty.
Before we get to the music itself, though, I’d like to take a minute and talk about the album cover, and how it essentially refutes every stereotype of design in the metal/hardcore field. Similar to a certain Deafheaven album that topped a lot of AOTY lists in 2013, Loss has a color scheme that is, according to popular belief, not metal—lots of pink and purple, with their logo (which reminds me a little of Fucked Up’s symbol) adorned in white. It features an old man as well, something that I don’t usually associate with the hardcore scene (after all, it’s very much a scene reliant on the energy and anger of youth). The only thing that could be relatively metal/hardcore about this album at first glance would be the skull that the old man is cradling.
Yet, despite how this album looks, it sounds like something out of this damn world. Throwers knows how to play their instruments insanely well (though they don’t bend down to superfluous and showy guitar work) which, in a way, could be symbolized that old man in the cover—while traditional hardcore punk once seemed to have a focus on energy as opposed to musicianship, Throwers has an idea what they’re doing musically. They still support the scene—hence the skull—but they’re going to do it their own way, by playing around with the typical hardcore formula in a way that is similar to Converge while still remaining a distinct musical entity.
Frankly put, it’s rare for a debut album to be of this high of quality. Every song rips, and the impeccable writing offers a variety sounds without losing its cohesiveness. The guitars have a buzzsaw tone as if Kurt Ballou himself had a hand in the production, but it doesn’t overwhelm the album; you can hear every instrument very well, and even the vocals are audible.
But enough about trying to describe it; just shut up and listen to this thing. You won’t be disappointed.