Game: No One Wins 12"

Sorry State Records Verified independent store

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At long last, the follow up to 2017’s "Who Will Play?" flexi has materialised in the form of "No One Wins" on the LP format. With influences and membership that span the world of h ardcore punk, both stylistically and geographically, this platter sports 10 tracks of pummeling hardcore punk that incorporates metallic elements drawn from the near and far reaches of mid 80s international hardcore and thrash to the simplicity of domestic HC pestilence. Blended with a great finesse that is both tasteful and potent - which seems to be a rare feat to attain this day and age - and buttressed by a top notch mastering job by the great Arthur Rizk (SHIT "What Do You Stand For," Impalers "Cellar Dweller”, Power Trip ‘Nightmare Logic’) which only feeds the fire that is the base of these already enormous tracks. GAME is the conduit. Relatively new but sending sickening sounds into the New Wave of British Hardcore collective, decimating any and all willing to be destroyed. Seek further advice on Game's sound via the precedent set by Gastunk, Celtic Frost, Sacrilege, Death Side, and the Execute. Members of Arms Race, Fucked Up, Career Suicide, Shrapnel, Violent Reaction and Subdued. Each record comes in a UV gloss jacket adorned with a stunning collaborative art effort by Nicky Rat, Jack Sabbat and Taketo Ikegami along with a risograph insert. Our take: After a flexi in 2017, London’s Game offer up their debut full-length. While Game’s flexi felt like an homage to mid to late 80s Japanese hardcore, No One Wins is a more distinctive and confident statement. Japanese hardcore is still an influence, but aside from the strong Death Side vibes on the closing “Foundation & Empire,” these tracks employ a more metallic riffing style reminiscent of Gastunk and Sacrilege. While the riffs are metallic, the songs are dense and ripping, making this a hardcore punk record through and through. Another way in which Game come into their own on No One Wins is Ola’s vocal style. Like the music, it’s a hardcore punk style, but there’s something about her phrasing and pronunciation that sound like no one else. Unique, creative, aggressive, great sound and packaging… what more can you ask of a hardcore punk record? Show more