The city of Atlanta is known for its output of southern fried rap and hip hop MC's like Outkast, Ludacris, and Jermaine Dupri. But there is more to the city than just inane rhymes and crunk beats. Not unlike hip hop in the 80's, Instilled are ready to break out of the shadow of modern music and take the world by storm.
Instilled rips through Unfinished Business, working through nine songs (seven actual songs) in just over 13 minutes. Musically, they draw influence from youth-crew style hardcore bands. And while they do play faster than traditional hardcore, they also have a harder edge than those of the youth-crew variety; it reminds me a bit of Allegiance. Because of vocal similarities, obvious comparisons are going to be made to American Nightmare, though this doesn't mean they are a clone. "To My Cellmate (Revised)" sets things off and eventually we are met with a mob of vocals screaming "kick down every door that blocks us / fist through every wall in our path." This is an obvious mission statement, one that is fully backed up on the songs "Slow Motion Hate" and "Stepping Out."
Lyrically, the content of Unfinished Business is rather bland, covering run-of-the-mill topics: the hardcore scene, lost friendship, and all that jazz. But these lyrics are structured in a way that there are plenty of opportunities to sing along. This is demonstrated best on "Who's Next," easily the best track on the EP. The song ends with the sing-a-long: "another fucking trend / another fucking year / I'll be here / we're still here." The EP's closer, "Looks Like Rain," also has a plethora of gang vocals.
Putting it simply, if you're into fast hardcore songs that are less than two minutes and have enjoyed the likes of The Suicide File and Scraps and Heart Attacks, then you will not be disappointed in this one bit. But, if on the other hand you're looking for obnoxious breakdowns or emo-hooks, you best move on because you're not going to find that here.
