Haymaker

While I often hate gushing reviews full of praise and adoration, I will make an exception with this one. While many hardcore bands put on an angry and nihilistic front, with songs chock full of breakdowns and violence-based lyrics, Hamilton, Ontario's hardcore legends Haymaker show these other groups to be nothing more than pretenders. Haymaker proves that while they can show their hatred and animosity better than most, their ability to meld these sentiments with intelligent and politically-based lyrical content remains powerful too.

After putting out numerous but semi-rare 7-inch releases, Haymaker delivered thier first fast-paced, anger-filled, thought-provoking full-length in 2002. Their Infest-inspired brand of hardcore leaves nothing to be desired, with chainsaw guitars, blasting drums and a vocals that sound as genuine as they do rage-filled.

Song like "1460 Days," "Cameras in the Streets," "God Can Fuck Hymnself" and "Tax Attack" address various political and social problems with unparalleled grit and fury. Other offerings, including "What I Mean to You," "Should I Care?" and "Can't Believe" demonstrate the pure nihilism and hatred that few bands, regardless of the genre, are able to pull off convincingly.

While unfortunately Haymaker has been banned from most local Southern Ontario venues (because of their fans' penchant for violence and pyromania), and the band exists only as a part-time project (guitarist Christian McMaster now plays in Cursed), this release will serve as an ample substitute for the mayhem that is their live shows.