‘A thirst never quenched, a belly full but never content…Lust for pleasure at our expense, your decadence will be our death’ (Lust For Pleasure)

Chicago’s Stress Positions boast three former members of C.H.E.W. plus a new vocalist, Stephanie Brooks.  Iron Lung have brought their demo, Walang Hiya (No Shame in Tagalog, the national language of the Philippines), to vinyl on this single-side 12-inch.  The essence of the band remains the politically charged, rapid fire hardcore that defined their first incarnation, but with an even fiercer delivery.  There are also emerging signs of the more experimental flourishes that are subtly woven into their subsequent debut full-length, Harsh Reality.

From the moment the drums erupt through the squalling feedback opening, the intensity never drops for even a moment, as the rabid vocals explore themes of economic excess (Lust For Pleasure, Failed State), misogyny (Interloper), and imperial legacies (This Land).  The title track is, perhaps, the stand-out – a slow-burn build that ignites into a crushing stomp, and a cathartic crescendo, as it examines the oppression of the Indigenous cultures of the Philippines by the Catholic Church.