The Formaldehyde Junkies

The Formaldehyde Junkies [7 inch] (2006)

SlowStupidHungry

The underground is just as susceptible to shallow trends and crappy bands as the mainstream, and when I heard about another band trying to pass themselves off as "`80s hardcore," I couldn't help but suspect it was just another Voorhees or Charles Bronson rip-off. For every Regulations, Career Suicide and Surf Nazis Must Die, there must be about a hundred shitty bands trying to copy trends that were tired about a decade ago.

The Formaldehyde Junkies now join the ranks of the elite hardcore units across the globe with their style of old-school thrash. These four songs are brief, angry, primitive four-chord thrashers that emphasive catchiness as much as speed. To say that the production values are "retro" would be generous, but the Junkies do not sound like a copyist band. Although their sound is remarkably similar to the Teen Idles, Necros, SOA, etc., one would be hard-pressed to find who they're completely stealing from. If this release had the multi-guitar harmonies and production values of Bane, I would not have bothered reviewing it.

"Hardcore"/"thrash" revival is still pretty big, but this band is good enough to outlast that and their music will hopefully become a trademark of this era of underground hardcore.