Cry Havoc – “No Good Deed Left Unpunished”
So Cry Havoc has always been one of TNB’s favorite hardcore bands.
We’ve been around eight years, Andy and I starting this website just when we finished college. I mean, when we first both applied for “Assisted Living.”
At that time we had Refuse Resist in Boston, Reason To Fight in Providence, USA Waste in Maine and Live Fast Die Fast in New York. (The later is back!)
And yes, we had Damn Broads and M-13 in Connecticut. But we also had these guys, too, who always put on amazing shows.
I saw Cry Havoc sometime last year and I asked them the very valid question, “Why haven’t we had you play at one of our Xmas shows?”
Turns out they did end up playing our last Xmas show, which was our best attended, (almost sold out!) show yet. And they can’t take all the blame for
that.
But I am sure that Cry Havoc was and still is, one of best and most potent bands we have covered.
And Andy Bang may lament that their singer, Jonny Disaster, doesn’t split his head open with the mic now at every show. But he can’t lament that they
still play with the same power and passion and worth as they always have.
Let’s proceed to the front of the store with our items:
“Fox Eyes” erupts like a four-alarm fire with high pitched, frenzied vocals and rhythms that move “faster than the speed of sound.” The drum clubs along
more like d-beat than hardcore. Slight pause towards the end, but a roaring cry leads this tremendous song to a fitting finish.
With a stuttering, rhythm guitar and a heavy, rock beat “Never Lose Your Way” soon explodes into a hardcore rant with powerful, driving rhythms smashing
the barriers of sound to smithereens. There’s a growling, snarling breakdown that leads into a buzzing, guitar solo that sounds like a bumblebee being
strangled to death. Trust me, that’s very good- just like this song.
“No More Wasted Time” starts with a punk beat and a great, melodic guitar lick that would be right at home on a Buzzcocks album, and whose last two notes
makes me think of “Dreaming” by Blondie. Hey! I really like that band! And I really like this tune, too.
“Dull Roar” starts with a roar and a wild, colliding aggressive beat and is nothing, if not dull but exciting. More exasperated vocals along soaring, droning
guitars and a rhythm going one hundred miles per hour. An effective, psychedelic guitar solo leads this terrific song out.
With a great, solid rock beat “Knife Fight In A Phone Booth” blasts out with passionate vocals answered by a chorus of “Hey! Hey! Hey!” This song sounds
like as if AC/DC decided to record a hardcore song. This song is as great as that notion is.
“Lethal Injection” sounds like one of these crazy, current Japanese Oi bands that I’m so fond of. “Here it is,” is like a wonderful, crazy, Japanese Oi song.
After a mild introduction “Treading Water & Getting Tired” is not part of my new haiku. But a headlong, hardcore rush of a song that decimates everything
and all in its’ way. There’s a gloomy, but excellent. headbanging breakdown along the way. Excellent arrangement and excellent tune.
“No Recourse” starts with a chorus chant of the title and some cool, slick guitar leading into the vitriolic vocals being sliced alive by the slashing
guitars. A great, tightrope guitar solo-dances across the hyper, hysterical singing as the song unravels. When the chorus chant returns this song
really kicks into high gear. My favorite song on a fabulous album.
Some hardcore bands now, seem to me like a lot of macho posturing, aggressive without much reflection, a kind of “boys club” with power but less thought
behind it.
But Cry Havoc have never given that impression to me. They have a sound that relates to the quirky beginnings of hardcore and punk, where bands were more weird
and unique in style and most fast than aggressive and overbearing.
Cry Havoc seems to embody the early intentions of hardcore without being retro or overly reverent. They’ve frequently covered Minor Threat in their sets,
in my opinion the best hardcore band of all time, and that implies to me they understand and appreciate the best aspects of hardcore.
And yeah, “That’s all well and good,” you might say, “But how does their new material sound?”
It sounds really great.
It sounds like the best hardcore release that I will hear this year.
It sounds like an eighteen-wheeler, full of passion and fury, colliding into an overpass on the highway, setting the truck on fire, into flames!
(Slimedog)
