Brooklyn's Death First plays D-beat hardcore in the fine, storied tradition of New York hardcore. And their singer, Jessy, is a seething ball of righteous anger. Personally, I'm always happy to find a band that's not just a bunch of dudes screaming about stuff. Anyway, the band issued their first 7-inch, Trapped, last year, and–spoiler alert–it slays.

Opening with a long, building intro, the band rips into the snarling "Fuck Your Art," declaring "if this is punk now, then I fucking quit!" before the furious title track erupts. At just four songs in under nine minutes, the EP is short, and doesn't let up for a second, musically or lyrically. From the title track's portrait of an emotionally manipulative partner to the venomous attack on the soundbite culture of modern politics in closer "Scratch the Surface," there's plenty of white-hot anger here. Jessy's vocals hit the right mix of shrieking fury with enough clarity to make out what she's singing. It helps that the production is fairly clean throughout the EP.

Trapped is a great debut; the songs are catchy and pummeling, the lyrics are thoughtful, and the whole thing sounds great. Hopefully the band keep releasing material of this quality.

You can stream the EP over on their Bandcamp page.