These days it seems like certain segments of the hardcore scene are all but indistinguishable from straight-up death metal. Here in Richmond, the primary proponent of that blurring and confusion is Left Cross, a band formed by members of Unsacred and fueled primarily, it seems, by a desire to recreate the dark, terrifying sounds of formative 80s metal classics like Scream Bloody Gore, Seven Churches, or even Blood Fire Death. It’s pretty awesome, if a bit of a surprise to find this band’s first album being released by Vinyl Conflict and not Prosthetic or something. But hey, who cares? Shredding is shredding, and in this case shredding rules, so let’s all get ready to headbang!
Organ Donor are also on this bill, and there’s no confusion about which side of the hardcore/metal line this group exists on–it’s the metal line, and make no mistake. I haven’t heard anything from them since their 2012 demo (I know, I know) but unless they’ve done a full reinvention of their sound in the last five years, you can expect some serious guttural chugging from these folks, and plenty more reasons to bang your head. Devil’s Hand, one of the many longer-running Richmond hardcore bands who only seems to show up on a bill once every couple years these days, will be busting out the raging USHC sounds of their 2013 Vinyl Conflict EP release for this one, and the younger and still quite active RVA HC band Firing Squad will kick things off with a dose of high-speed pugnacity. Wear your studded wristbands for this one, y’all.
