On the wall of the warehouse where I work hangs a weathered, spiral-bound, laminated booklet with the words "EMERGENCY PROCEDURE GUIDE" printed across the top. Below that is a rainbow colored array of segregated tabs that read things like: "EVACUATION," "TORNADO," "EARTHQUAKE," "FIRE," et cetera. On the very last tab, the steel blue colored one, it reads in bold white letters—"ACTIVE SHOOTER." As banal and ordinary as something like this emergency manual might seem—especially in the beigeness of a workplace setting—this bottom tab always catches my eye.
Before active shooter was just another media buzzword for an epidemic of mass murder and long before Columbine changed the fabric of American culture, active shooter was a term only tossed around by competitive gun enthusiasts and firearm advocates. The only thing more terrifying than an active shooter situation is the frequency and prevalence that would necessitate an "ACTIVE SHOOTER" tab in a public or business environment. I'm old enough to remember when that tab was not always there and its addition holds my attention.
As active shooter turns from informed gun safety vernacular to terroristic gun violence headlines, a group of hardcore speed freaks from the sticky streets of Houston, Texas are turning active shooter into a name that elicits something more entertaining and show-worthy; yet just as blasting. Active Shooter, the band, are yet again another band carving their names into the Bayou City of Syrup's famed roster of grindcore elites. Bands like Insect Warfare, PLF, Cryptic Void and more recently, blog alums and fellow hoodrats, Cocaine Titans, all call this Space City home. This Texas coastal city is something of hallowed grindcore grounds and it's no mistake that Houston has had several mentions in the House of Grindcore.
Active Shooter debuted to the larger grindcore community in 2016 with their first demo in the form of a three piece—a lineup demographic that would remain a semi-permanent fixture throughout the band's tenure. Their 2016 demo was followed up with the EAR.2.THA.STREET EP released the same year, and then later by the band's self-titled EP released the following year in 2017. It might be safe to say that Active Shooter didn't arrive on my radar until around maybe 2019 or 2020, after I either could not attend the local show or my then band had to turn down the local show. Although, I might be mistaken. Pre-Covid life is a blur now. But it did introduce me to the band for the first time as well as 2019's Sign of The Times; a release that was gathering a lot of attention through Bandcamp at the time. The band's latest release came in 2021 with the cassette tape, Life Stands Still. A release recorded by Dallas engineer and founding member of both Cognizant and Trucido, Irving Lopez.
All of this to say that Active Shooter is overdue for a new release. However, in the meantime, Italian grindcore compendium collector, Inglorious Moshers Records, has taken it upon themselves to release a discography CD in 2022 compiling all of Active Shooter's previous releases listed above. Between the years of 2016 and 2021 the band released some forty-six tracks totalling thirty minutes. Optimal grind time ratio for any worthwhile release.
As a contemporary version of the band, Active Shooter give off big Insect Warfare vibes, only not as long-winded, if that is possible. They basically waste no time and dish out some very tasty, very heavy metallic riffs and some powerful hyper-blasting drumwork in mere seconds. The vocals are a high-low contrast that mostly relies on a guttural monotone that is reminiscent of the mighty Rahi Geramifar.
Now, reviewing a discography compilation album is a little complicated because there are too many variables to review it as a whole, but reviewing each release individually is a bit extravagant. I haven't chosen which way to go about it yet, so bear with me.
For spanning five years, multiple lineup changes and differing production and recording engineers, the CD plays reasonably consistently. The tracklisting is in reverse chronological order, so the newer, Life Stands Still starts the record and the 2016 demo wraps it up. Understandably, the style and production levels go down from start to finish. The only true constant is guitarist Erik Gomez and drummer Seth Wilson. The two are powerhouse pillars of grindcore annihilation and the two are responsible for crafting the contents of this entire discography. The vocal duties on the demo, EAR.2.THA.STREET EP and the self-titled EP were handled by Wes Mason before being replaced by Dan Silva for the later Sign of The Times and Life Stands Still.
The opening of Life Stands Still tracks have a dark, stout, brown production quality. The guitar is a metal distorted Texas tornado that is rich with riffage and a chronic use of a Dimebag style whammy bar. Starting track, "Intro," is a Slayer-esque thrash dipped instrumental that sets a deathy-grind tone to the record. The drumming is a stampeding whirlwind of blast beats and double bass gallops that come at you from every angle. The hyper-blasting, high-pitched snare tone rises above the cacophony to emphasize what truly matters most—which is the hyper-blasting, high-pitched snare tone. It's very much in line with other snare heavy grindcore bands like Sulfuric Cautery. Silva's vocals are low, grating barks that run deeper and more metal than Mason's more power violence styled vocals.
Sign of The Times plays similar to Life Stands Still only with a sharper, cleaner production. The guitar riffs run clearer and keener. Things don't really become noticeably different until the self-titled EP. Mason's vocals being the biggest deviation. The music seems a little less mature than later releases, but still very solid. The rest of the releases go on like that, diminishing accordingly down the line. Two of the recordings—EAR.2.THA.STREET and Sign of The Times—feature the band as a four piece with a bass player, while all the others have the band as a trio.
Active Shooter are probably Texas' best kept grindcore secret as I don't hear their name as much as I feel I should. That might be due to the popularity of the band's namesake in the news and media, making a Google search somewhat complicated. However, I did finally catch-up with the band last year at the Haltom City Theater playing a show with Deterioration, Trucido and Noisy Neighbors. "A bulldozing beast of brutality" is the initial descriptive phrasing that came to mind. Active Shooter are three big burly built dudes with a big burly sound to match. They put on a great set and definitely stood out in an already hellaciously stacked lineup.
I've seen the band categorized as hardcore, power violence and grindcore; all of which are applicable and all of which the band has embraced. Depending on the release you could get one or the other or all the above. This discography is a good document of a band's evolution and growth. From a power violence/grind-violence beginning to a beefier grindcore tank, Active Shooter has risen through the Houston City grindcore ranks. I feel the later albums have the band hitting their stride and finding their sound—a brutal sound that it is.
In 2022, the year that Inglorious Moshers Records issued this CD, there were six hundred forty-four mass shootings in America. In 2023 there were six hundred fifty-five mass shootings. This year the United States Surgeon General declared gun violence a public health crisis. As the active shooter trend appears to be becoming more en vogue, I know of one Active Shooter that I want to see a lot more of. (To be clear, it's the band I'm reviewing and not the white nationalist terrorist incels of the world.)
Listen to the album: https://ingloriousmoshers.bandcamp.com/album/discography-2016-2021
