I can't help but wonder what the music world would be like without experimentation. Sure, the first to try something different is often shunned, but their willingness to try something different is what makes them so great. While perhaps not a genre-defining move, the direction that Skin Like Iron have taken with their music is one breath of fresh air in the stagnant and stale world of hardcore.
Skin Like Iron picks up where they left off, literally. "Wisdom II" is the first cut (their previous recording ended with "Wisdom") on this, their self-titled 10" release. The song leads off with thirty-seconds of driving guitar and mid-tempo drumming akin to Drive Like Jehu. It isn't long before that changes with quicker riffs and Alex Capasso's caustic delivery. The song quickly moves from a rock-based song to a raging blast of dissonant hardcore punk.
Skin Like Iron continues to pick up the pace as they album moves from track to track. "Ugly Reflexes" raises the intensity levels tenfold with its searing guitars and distortion upped, bringing to mind the latest Paint it Black LP. But that's nothing compared to "War Dawn." Paul Ehat's guitars are blistering as he channels classic Ginn. This partnered with the sonic drumming of Drew Vaughn makes for the best cut on the record.
The band continues on with track after track of SST-influenced hardcore partnered with the metallic punk sounds of His Hero is Gone. The band does experiment with its sound though. "Frailty" opens with haunting guitar tones and turns into a punk tune reminiscent of Nirvana being channeled through Discharge. "Down and Deep" showcases the thundering basslines of Blaine Patrick and works with mid-tempos as opposed to those normally associated with lightning-fast hardcore. But where Skin Like Iron really showcases their talents is on the last two tracks.
The flip side of the 10" features two instrumental tracks that take up half of the recording - "Exaltation (Transit I)" and "Expiration (Transit II)." These two songs indicate the band's wide rage of influences. Where as the previous seven songs were punk and hardcore oriented, these two tracks take to a different realm. "Exaltation (Transit I)" is a masterpiece of heavy, drige, metal ala Sabbath and The Melvins. "Expiration (Transit II)" continues this direction but is more repetitious and modern, almost like a hardcore version of Explosions in the Sky.
With each new release Skin Like Iron continues to impress. They refine their sound with each new recording session, finding their own sound nestled within their varying influences. This is hardcore being redefined. This is brilliant.
