OBSESSIÓ’s debut is a blast of crude hardcore. Formed during the extremely dark times of August of 2018 and based between Athens and Barcelona the band first statement is an 8 track 12” at 45 rpm which knocks you down with the first chord. Kindly indebted to the living legacy of TOTALITÄR, CRUDITY and other Nordic Beat greats while keeping an unmistakably modern swagger. Breakneck pace and musical manufacture care of three Greeks who have set the stage for Angela’s no doubt bleak summary of the world, whose distinctively intimidating and minimal powerhouse voice crashes across OBSESSIÓ’s music. No songs over 2 minutes, no frills or tricks, no contemplative pondering on delicate matters, and most of all no fucking melody. Our take: I’m thankful that I live during a time when I can experience records by bands like Bad Breeding, Kaleidoscope, and L.O.T.I.O.N. as they come out, watching in real time as hardcore expands and evolves. But ultimately what attracts most of us to hardcore is the first visceral rush of hearing Discharge or Minor Threat or Black Flag, bands who cut music down to the bone. I suppose it’s no coincidence that skeletons and skulls feature so prominently in hardcore artwork; hardcore is skeletal music, and as much as I love expanding my mind, sometimes (OK, often) I want a record that activates my prehistoric animal brain. This LP by Obsessió is one of those records. Like a lot of classic hardcore records, the emphasis is on the drums and vocals, the former driving your heart rate through the roof as the latter tricks your brain’s fight-or-flight response into thinking you're cornered by a crazed, bloodthirsty predator. With barely ten minutes of music and only a few minor variations in tempo and volume, this record is a dead sprint, like Group Sex infused with the raw and real vibe of early Wretched. I don’t know what secret sauce separates thrilling hardcore records from competent ones, but I can tell you that Obsessió has doused this one in it.
