UK hardcore acts Alaska and End Reign offer a pair each of crushing hardcore tracks for this split 7".

Alaska set it off with "Mark of Life", which begins with a mean, heavy dirge with metallic and crusty overtones. It takes almost two minutes for the vocals to kick in, and when it does the song predictably kicks it into high gear with a faster tempo and fierce vocals. Think Rise and Fall at their most intense, with an even more metallic bend here and there. The band get more dirge-y for the last minute or so, and the intertwining guitar tones are cool. "Gold Blood" feels more bass-y at first, with cooler guitar tones as it goes along and a pounding breakdown with cascading ripples of guitars.

End Reign, well, they're pretty similar, but not quite as good, and a recording that's not as full-bodied either, sounding oddly hollow. The vocals are more dissonant and less comphrensible, too-kind of a one-dimensional, shrill bark. That being said, their side's hardly awful. "Release the Wolves" and "Paradise" should have your head bobbing, though, and I detect a slight hint of '90s American metallic hardcore influence in here too.

STREAM
Alaska - Mark of Life
End Reign - Release the Wolves
End Reign - Paradise