The second LP from Chicago's Rash. Hivemind features 11 tracks of hardcore punk that oscillate from fast and aggressive to crawling and harsh with brief respites of noise and experimentation. Recorded in July of 2019 at Altered States Studio in Chicago, Hivemind is Rash's first recorded output since their 2017 split with fellow Chicago denizens C.H.E.W. First pressing is 300 records. Our take: Chicago’s Rash has been kicking around for a while now, flying below the radar despite putting out a bunch of releases. Hivemind is their second 12” (the first, Skinner Box, appeared on High Fashion Industries in 2016), and it continues to develop the blend of hardcore and noise rock we heard on those earlier records. While Rash’s sound is a punishing roar, they rarely settle into a groove for more than a few bars. Instead, their rhythms are jagged, shifting with little notice and giving Hivemind an unsettlingly schizoid vibe. Once your ear acclimates to the assault, though, you hear how dense these songs are. Nothings seems off the shelf or lazy… every second of music has a gritty texture, a counter-intuitive rhythm, or an unexpected melody that earns its spot on the record. Rash’s harsh and bruising sound will appeal to fans of the Youth Attack Records / “mysterious guy HC” sound, but that it’s on the more technical and adventurous end of that sound means Hivemind is way more than just a genre record.
