If there is brawl you really want to be at the heart of, it is Toss a Coin the new album from Swiss hardcore outfit Insanity. It brings eleven insatiable confrontations to the ear; a clutch of spirit raising, defiance driven roars which refuse to take not today sir for an answer.
With a sound bred in the New York hardcore scene at its height, Insanity has sonically bullied and physically roared their way to a potent reputation and presence within the European punk scene over the past five years, one now sure to be re-ignited again by Toss a Coin. Since emerging, the Lucerne quintet has surged from their homeland across Europe into international waters, sharing stages with the likes of Hatebreed, Agnostic Front, Madball, Sick Of It All, Terror and many more along the way as well as headlining their own successful tours. Their debut album, No Limit, set down a certain marker in their ascent, its well-received presence matched by that in success by the Ready To Row EP. Released through Bastardized Recordings is a new powerful statement from the band, in sound and political/social quarrel as well as simply rousing punk ‘n’ roll.
With gang shouts, body manipulating grooves, and addiction forging hooks as prevalent as raw antagonism and instinctive antipathy to the world’s ills, Toss a Coin snarls and harasses from its initial second and opening breath of first up No Tolerance For Intolerance. The gnarly tone of Pery Zemp’s bass instantly has ears lured, riffs a great dirty backing before both collude with the rapier like swings of drummer Raphael Renggli and the first of involvement enticing band shouts. Vocalist Tobias Küng is soon to the fore directing middle finger reply to prejudice, the guitars of Yannick Balmer and Michael Portmann casting a mesh of grouchy riffs and animated grooves. There is no escaping the swift influence of its attitude and body, a submission subsequently given to song after song in varying but certain degrees thereon in.
The excellent start is matched by the caustic stomp of Find A Way, its intensive assault a furious charge compared to the swagger of the previous protagonist but veined with melodic tendrils and scythes and twisting spirals of noise. For all the rage, already an inbred infectiousness is as powerfully commandeering reactions, Insanity entangling both with imagination and zeal. It is a quality as rich within the album’s title track and indeed What I See after that. The first of the pair points and challenges with every syllable and note, band cries and neck muscle testing catchiness a particular trespassing incitement within nothing but while the second flows from its predecessor upon another deliciously grouchy bassline into a web of seriously grooved and rapacious punk rock with the instincts to rock ‘n’ roll.
Four tracks down and we would have forgiven any upcoming slip-ups such the potency of the quartet but no second is wasted in allowing ears and attitude a moment to relax, With My Friends an immediate air punching, hip guiding announcement of kinship stoking the fires. Again pleasure is ignited by Zemp’s bass, its metallic grievance manna for personal taste more than matched by the rest of the band within the inflammatory holler.
Down consumes ears in a cantankerous bawl next but one delivered with deliberate restraint carrying a perfect level of volatility; a blend lifting the body to its feet and vocal chords to their highest decibel throughout. Such success is an easy finding for All I Need too; its badgering riffs and probing rhythms herded into greater feistiness by Küng and listener by the ever persuasive and addictive gang clamours.
Through the mercurial but persistently wilful and stormy climate of One Day and the surly belligerence of $laves, there is no let-up in disdain and disobedience or imagination lit invention which may at times take a while to reveal it’s surprises within the tempests but hungrily makes each track distinct and riveting incitement; What’s Hardcore just as eager to prove the point with its punk ‘n’ roll revelry. Like a vipers nest, the song writhes with grooves, their snaky lures even flirting away when the song is running headlong with punk predation.
The final ignition of defiance and unbridled pleasure is provided by Die For, a body stomping charge riding thrash nurtured riffs like a surfer as melodies flare and rhythms prowl. Musically, the senses feel like they are being stalked by the track, vocally being willingly drawn with the spirit into mobilisation, both whilst rocking like a hound in heat to their combined militancy.
It is a glorious end to an outstanding encounter entwining the familiar with instinctive contumacy and enterprise resulting in one of, if not, the most enjoyable and manipulative treats heard so far this year.
Toss a Coin is out now through Bastardized Recordings @ https://bastardizedrecordings.bandcamp.com/album/toss-a-coin or http://insanity.ch/store/
http://insanity.ch/ https://www.facebook.com/insanity.metal
Pete RingMaster 26/05/2017
Copyright RingMaster: MyFreeCopyright
The excellent opening to Nothing Matters is quickly matched by Thought I Had It Right, another song with thick hooks and entrancing harmonic tempting. Slightly more restrained in energy compared to its predecessor, the song saunters and sways with a rich Muse like sultriness to sound and voice. Every syllable comes coated with a spice of angst whilst melodies like a fine wine just become more seductive and effective on the senses with very passing moment. There is also a volatile edge to the contagion posing as a track, its sonic presence flirting with causticity as it forcibly infests and ignites ears through to the imagination.
The following Sleepwalker explodes in a creative and impassioned tirade you expect to hear in a hardcore based offering, continuing to feed with satisfaction those thoughts but twisting them into fresh endeavour through the persistently thoughtful and skilled ideation of the guitars. As in its predecessor though, there is a particular moment where the good song ignites into something greater, and here it is the lull in the sonic tempest where the bass of Christian Pontes takes over with a richly carnivorous bass tone matched in intimidation by the muscular swings of drummer Dustin Ueckert. It is a mere moment in the passage of the track but again seems to instil a new attitude and impact into the following adventure and passion of the proposition.
show themselves to be quickly compelling. The song is a confrontational prowl of ears, though as lyrics show, is more face to face with its own personal angst than solely challenging the listener, a showdown further driven by the accomplished riffs and enterprise of guitarist Garrett Gutierrez and the furious tones of vocalist Richard Haro.
with a more unpredictable character compared to other onslaughts within the album, though it is soon overshadowed by the excellent Annihilation. If other songs can be called predatory, the song is sheer bestial insidiousness. Riffs and rhythms cage and bully from the off even though they come bound in corrosive yet contagious grooves. As all the tracks there is a swing and underlying infectiousness, but here it is given full rein to seduce; just a shame the song is so short at barely over a minute. The juices start flowing and it dumps them and departs, though the next up Kingdoms Fall is not shy at bringing a catchy inhospitable climate and savage maliciousness to bear on ears, even if it lacks the compelling virulence of its predecessor.
urgent riffs and firm rhythms. Into its stride the track prowls and stomps with sinews pressing the ear and vocals scowling like a bear in heat, Mastodon and even more so Black Tusk references rearing their head quite soon on. Bass and drums provide a sturdy cage around the enterprising guitar teases and sonic cuts, and by its departure the song has lit a definite appetite for the release which the following Midnight Eyes with its rampaging drums and scything melodic blades alongside persistently niggling riffs has the fight for. A carnivorous death metal breath marks its charging metal gait whilst the song twists and turns on its feet, a thick stoner persuasion emerging from the savage intensity before changing into a doom lined finale.
