Growing up on a steady diet of Sabbath, the darker aspects of music always held so much appeal to me. Yeah, I liked punk rock, still do, but I was looking for something heavier, darker, and as cheesy as it sounds, more evil. I am not talking about Slayer's fake evil. I am talking about visceral scare the shit out of you in the dark evil. Well, I forget what year it was (I am getting up there in years so forgive me), but there it was, Integrity's Those Who Fear Tomorrow. It was in the punk rock section and had this old, creepy looking artwork. (This was before everyone in the mid-90's hardcore scene used Francis Bacon paintings for album covers.) The local punk rock god gave me this disgusted look when I took the record to the counter. I immediately knew this would be good. When I got home, I popped this on the stereo and an intense obsession began. Those Who Fear Tomorrow was more than a revelation. It changed my rather limited musical world at that point. It was intense. It was crazy sounding. It was fucked and I loved it.
Over the years this album has been reissued at least four or five times by different labels in various forms, and yes, I own them all because I am a sucker for this band. That is part of the nature and allure of Integrity. You cannot be a true fan without feeling cheated at some point. I am sure Dwid, the vocalist and brain behind the operation, would have it no other way. A milestone in hardcore music and a must have record, Those Who Fear Tomorrow stands as one of the greatest hardcore albums ever.
And here we have another re-release of the record. No matter how many times this gets re-issued, it seems to come out again just in time to remind us all of the monstrous force that it exudes. Those Who Fear Tomorrow begins with a gruesome, horrific sounding sample that aptly prepares the listener for the bludgeoning aural assault within the album. The track is referred to as "Den of Iniquity." As that fades out the howl for "Micha: Those Who Fear Tomorrow" rings out in a pained and anguished voice. This is one of the greatest beginnings to a hardcore record anywhere, bar none. What follows is a 50 minute-plus kick to the balls and total evisceration of what you thought is a heavy hardcore record. "Micha: Those Who Fear Tomorrow" is an absolute assault on the senses. It immediately sucks the listener into the constant pounding that the album provides. The bass following the opening howl is one of the toughest sounding things I have ever heard, especially with the slow rhythm that the guitars maintain as the screams spit out sheer disgust. The downbeat guitar riffing that the guitars then hit you with is absolutely killer. The guitar solo sounds almost nether-worldly and fits the song so well. The song is just tough sounding.
"Diehard" is a desperate sounding piece. It sounds like the warning cries of a cornered animal. The vocals sound like some crazed homeless person fighting for his garbage scraps from a pack of feral dogs. The lyrics ring through with one of the best diatribes on guilt and self hate that border psychotic rambling. The lyrics to "Judgement Day" might be the impetus of the attitude carried by modern bands like Terror and their ilk. "Descent Intoââ¬Â¦" and its immediate follower "Darkness" might make up one of my favorite Integrity songs ever."Descent Intoââ¬Â¦" is an instrumental that sets up the next song perfectly. I have to listen to them together every time; it seems the right thing to do. As for "Darkness", it is a mind blowing three minutes of isolated despair. The song was a theme for me for quite a long time, and it felt so much better to know that there were others with similarly insane thoughts. Hey, adolescence was a shitty time period and for me, this song describes how I felt for a large portion of that time.
The rest of this album is a further exploration of the darkest recesses of human existence. "In Contrast of Sin" is one of the earliest most known Integrity songs. It is another tough as nails track that has some of the best sing along parts that I still have heard. It is fast and the vocals sound manic and barely spit out in time with song. It just sounds vicious. The rhythm is again pounding. And it hammers its chorus into your head. It is through this record that I was introduced to true apocalyptic themes, the type that frighten you because of how real the songs make it out to be. Some of the songs have themes of lost love and even these sound evil and twisted. For example, "Dawn of a New Apocalypse" has vengeful take on a son/ mother relationship and lost childhood with lyrics like "Mother of mine / I'd give my left arm / just to witness your demise / you brought me into this world / I'll be the one to take you out / So now you wonder what's wrong with me / Taking your life." Seriously, this type of imagery is both vivid and disturbing. Name another song that sounds so vile, I dare you.
"March of the Damned" is a fitting end to the album proper. It continues the twisted desperation that dots the landscape of Those Who Fear Tomorrow. It would be weird to characterize this as ending the album on an up note or a down one, although, with the way that the rest of the record goes; use your imagination.
For this the 15th Anniversary edition of Those Who Fear Tomorrow, Dwid and company include five extra songs that feature the Integrity drummer that both he and Aaron (long time guitarist and song writer) enjoyed playing with the most, David Nicholi Araca. "Eighteen" is here, and it is an odd but severely underrated song by the band. It has a ballad-y feel at first and kind of foretells Dwid's latest project, Roses Never Fade. There is also an oddly edited version of "Jimson Isolation" and the cover of Negative Approach's "Evacuate" (a classic for sure).
If you already own multiple couples of Those Who Fear Tomorrow, than you are already having the same debate in your head that I did when I saw this version. I already own five copies. What makes this one special? There are some liner notes that appear in no previous versions of the record. There are the lyrics included in this version that are usually almost illegible. There are the bonus tracks that have been included in the numerous singles and oddities collections that the band has released. But, I must say...I find myself listening to this version of the album a lot. I am unsure why; perhaps, subconsciously I am trying to get my money's worth out of it. Regardless, Integrity fiends will more than likely pick this up again. If you don't own this yet, get it. It is a great album. There is no two ways about it. Listen to this record obsessively and realize how even at 15 years old, this record demolishes most hardcore records that come out today.
