The House of Grindcore has never really done a review of a split 7 inch, but with the prevalence of split EP's in the genre it only seemed inevitable. So I had to start a new segment called Split Level Housing that will handle any split record reviews from here on out. This week my copy of the Meth Leppard/Infanticide split 7 inch vinyl came in the mail from Night Animal Records so what better choice for an inaugural split review.
Unless you've been living under a non-grindcore rock, you're most likely familiar with Meth Leppard. The South Australian two-piece has been absolutely prolific since 2015. Releasing a split EP or sometimes two a year up until their much anticipated full length album Woke in 2020. All of which helped raise them up as one of the top bands in the genre. Musically, Meth Leppard stick to a tried-and-true sound that needs little deviation. Their ballistic song writing and quality production have made them a near flawless band and they remain so on their side of this new split with Infanticide.
Guitarist, vocalist and previous member of Adelaide powerviolence band PowerXChuck, Ryan "Cheese" Chessman makes up one half of the Aussie duo and brings some heavy, persistently kinetic guitar work that ping-pongs throughout their 5 minute and 10 second side of this split. Ryan's talent on the fret board is a huge part of Meth Leppard's popularity. Instead of just relying on power chords alone, he interlaces them with spring loaded single string runs that keep songs fresh and energized. Tiered upon that, his vocals consist of low monosyllabic bursts that sounds like the cutting on and off of a blow torch into the microphone and scathing higher shrieks that are systematically shotgunned on to each track. The vocals are less diverse than the guitar playing but work just as well.
Drummer Kieren Murray fills out the remainder of the band as well as expertly fulfills his duties as blast beat machine. He is relentless and perpetual. The drum work on this split and all of Meth Leppard's splits are expertly precise and sounds batteringly oppressive. Again, a lot of this is helped by great production. The mix overall is perfect. The tone of the guitar tracks and the pitch of the drums layered over them are unerring, as is the band's musical talent. Their 2020 live set on the Global Grindcore Alliance video sessions looked almost effortless. The combination of all of these elements brings us another consistent and enjoyable release from Meth Leppard.
On the opposite side we have Sweden's Infanticide with their first new material since 2013's Misconception of Hope, which was ultimately a disappointing full length. Not so much for the music, but mainly due in large part to the production. The album was too quiet and distant in my opinion. It left the album emasculated as it sounded like it was filtered through a clock radio. I'm unsure if this was just some unfortunate out come of mastering or some intentional choice for a low-fi sound perhaps as a tribute to the regions black metal roots. Either way, coming up against past efforts like 2007's Extinction Plan and 2010's From Our Cold Dead Hands, it was jarring. The band's material on this split EP is not a return to those earlier releases, but a continuation of the sound Misconception of Hope was building towards, yet louder. This is most likely because these songs were recorded in 2013 as well. My guess is they're possibly from the same recording sessions as Misconception of Hope.
The standard wiry guitar work offered up by guitarist Johan Malm slathered over Kristoffer Löfgren's D-beat and blast beat mix of punk and metal mark what we've come to know as Infanticide's signature sound over the years. I've also always enjoyed their inclusion of Kristofer Jankarls' bass audibly in the mix. Although it's usually fuzzy, it does help beef things up and is nice to hear in a genre that can have a "take it or leave" type of attitude towards the instrument.
Another noticeable evolution of the band's growth is in the vocals. The band's earlier, albeit by no means exclusive reliance on Simon Frid's low frothy, crust punk vocals are now accompanied by Jankarls' higher, wilder vocals that have become more apparent in the EP's between From Our Cold Dead Hands and Misconception of Hope. I've always liked Infanticide a lot and I followed their releases closely over the years. They were one of my favorite post-Nasum bands. My apologies for the played out cliché of using Nasum as the yardstick to compare all Scandinavian grind bands. But their influence and popularity makes it an easy tool of comparison that doesn't need explanation. Yet in this case Infanticide shares members with Axis of Despair, the current band of ex-Nasum founder Anders Jakobson's. Making comparisons between these band members and countrymen hard to avoid. The band's side of the record is still quieter than their split mates, but seems louder than Misconception of Hope ever was. If these songs are indeed from that same 2013 studio time then that seems to be the high water mark for the band.
Overall this split is a rager of a release. Meth Leppard do what they do best and remain among one of the world's best bands, which comes as no surprise. Infanticide might not be as recognized by as many listeners or may have been previously passed over by others, but this release has some of their best stuff to date. We also get two different worlds of grind here. With songs titled "KKKaren", "Trump Card" and "Canceled", Meth Leppard are bringing straight forward grind with a tongue-in-cheek approach. Obviously poking fun at current social instabilities and American ignorance. While Infanticide songs have the gloom and doom tales of warfare and mankind as a whole. (At least I assume as this release comes without lyrics.) They also display more of a mixture between metal, punk, and of course that Swedish grindcore influence.
FFO: PLF, The Kill, Axis Of Despair
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