‘Feasting their eyes on the profits at hand, To steal is all they understand, To steal from the poor is all they understand’ (The Cutting Begins)

Umeå’s Aftermath plunge us with unreserved relish back into the heyday of late 1980s UK stenchcore, that murky realm where anarcho-punk and metallic rust become one, on this bleakly atmospheric follow-up to their 2022 debut EP, Garbage Day.  Down tuned, buzzsaw riffage and a barrelling, d-beat orientated rhythm section lay down a filthily distorted, mid-paced barrage that is wreathed with flourishes of sorrowfully melancholic melodicism.

The venomously roared vocals introduce a more avowedly death metal influence in the vein of Bolt Thrower’s Karl Willetts as they explore themes of economic austerity / insecurity, unbridled consumerism, environmental degradation, and religious indoctrination.  Stand out moments include the infectiously burly First Blood and the slab-like fury of Altered States, before the sepulchral lament of When Birds Sing No More.