Terror, Rhythm Amongst the Chaos

There’s not a whole lot groundbreaking on Rhythm Amongst the Chaos, but really, I don’t really mind. There’s something in the band’s tried-and-true brand of thrashcore that gets the blood pumping, even when I know full well I’ve heard this a million times before. The Metallica-style old-school thrash guitars, the hardcore bellowing, the pounding drums, the low-as-the-ground bass, the gotta-sacrifice-for-your-freedom lyrics — it’s a template, sure, but Terror do it pretty well, throwing themselves headlong into burners like “Vengeance Calls On You,” “Disconnected,” or the seemingly straightforward “Arms of the Truth,” which I think is actually some kind of statement of faith.

“Vengeance” is probably the best song on here, all things considered — the guitars cut like buzzsaws, the band’s locked tight into the beat, and the vocals are raw and open. Even when the band shifts gears and slows things down, it doesn’t feel contrived, which is a pleasant surprise. My head’s banging along unconsciously, and that’s a good sign, as is the fact that when the too-brief EP’s done, I kinda go, “wha? where’d it go?” (The whole thing, all five songs, clocks in at just over nine fucking minutes, no lie.)

That’s the good part, the part I like and will probably be checking out again. The bad part? Well, it’s not bad, but it’s definitely a bit of a letdown — I was psyched to hear Jedi Mind Tricks rapper Vinnie Paz cut loose on the EP’s final track, a cover of Breakdown’s “Kickback,” hoping for some crushing hip-hop/hardcore crossover. But nope, sadly not; Vinnie pops up in the intro to the song giving a shoutout to the band, and that’s about it. If he does show up again, then he’s a bigger fan of hardcore than I’d realized, ’cause I swear I can’t tell his vocals apart from Scott Vogel’s raw-throated yell.

The track’s not bad, again, but it’s a bit disappointing, probably the weakest of the five songs on Rhythm. But eh — I can always skip that one and get back to the other seven minutes of relentless pummeling on here.