Review
Cut The Shit
Marked For Life

Gloom (2004) Zed

Cut The Shit – Marked For Life cover artwork
Cut The Shit – Marked For Life — Gloom, 2004

By the time you read this, Cut The Shit will have already finished their final west coast shows and be on the way to breaking up. Their final show will no doubt be off the hook, but for those of us who won't be able to attend said event, we are blessed with ten and a half minutes of near perfect hardcore. Before listening you might want to take a really huge breath, because shit is about to get dangerous.

Cut The Shit plays hardcore how it was meant to be played: fast, angry, and in your fucking face. While this is not the most innovative concept I've ever come across, due to how well done it is and how hard it rocks down your intestines and out your anus, this record is definitely worth your time. For those not used to this type of sound, imagine the first fight you got into. Nobody knew what the hell they were doing, but it was primal as fuck. Cut The Shit doesn't pull out anything too complicated (it's punk rock, not tech metal) but simply due to the band's sheer velocity, power, and massive aggression, this release manages to stick its dong through one of your ears and out the other.

Their previous full length, Harmed And Dangerous, was one of the best releases of 2003, and their latest, Marked For Life, is more than able to surpass it. This happens because MFL is able to take everything that H&D did so well and condense it from 18 to 12 songs. The two albums definitely aren't that much different, but MFL seems to sound a bit harsher, angrier, and faster than H&D ever did. This condensed feeling might also come from the average song length diminishing from 57 seconds to about 54. The only real drawback to this album is that the songs sound pretty similar to one another, but due to the short length of this album, it doesn't become monotonous, though more pick slides and radical guitar solos would also be appreciated, and maybe a rock out jam equivalent to "Love Is A Lie."

While the gatefold vinyl version, limited to 1000, contains the Marked For Life release, the CD version contains the additional Bored To Death 7" and one sided 7" songs. If you're already a fan of bands like Tear It Up and Bones Brigade don't hesitate, fucking move.

8.6 / 10Zed • August 22, 2004

Cut The Shit – Marked For Life cover artwork
Cut The Shit – Marked For Life — Gloom, 2004

Recently-posted album reviews

Citric Dummies

Split With Turnstile
Feel It Records (2025)

Citric Dummies might be the band I saw live the most often in 2025, yet I put off a thorough review of their latest LP until the calendar turned to 2026. Anyway, Split With Turnstile, besides having a great title, continues the band's garage-punk sound that draws from a deep array of influences from eggpunk to '80s hardcore while mostly … Read more

Pageant Mum

Finis Amoris Est
Red Tape Music (2026)

Breakup records usually announce themselves with a band. There is betrayal, shouting, and doors slamming shut. Finis Amoris Est, the new EP from UK post-hardcore outfit Pageant Mum, takes a different route. It’s a record about what happens after the blowup, when the noise dies down and you’re left alone with the quieter, harder questions. Across these four tracks, the … Read more

Pat Todd & The Rankoutsiders

After The Dolls
Heavy Medication Records (2026)

Pat Todd is a roots rock and roll incarnate — a relentless road dog, grinding it out night after night with his hot-as-buckshot band, The Rankoutsiders. His shows are raw, electric, and lived-in, a testament to decades on the road. With a career spanning over forty years, Todd has earned a reputation as one of the hardest-working men in the … Read more