Review / 200 Words Or Less
Just Went Black
Embracing Emptiness

Assault (2007) Michael

Just Went Black – Embracing Emptiness cover artwork
Just Went Black – Embracing Emptiness — Assault, 2007

Hamburg, Germany is a city that is known more for its architecture than it is for its musical output. In fact, if you were to ask anyone about the music of Hamburg, they'd probably start talking about some classical composer from the 1800's and not a hardcore band of today. And while I'm sure they are popular in their native country, it's my guess that Just Went Black is known more in the U.S. than they are in Germany thanks to their previous full-length release on New Age Records.

Embracing Emptiness is a six-song 10" from the five-piece group. The album is primarily 90's metallic hardcore with a smattering of progressive-hardcore and various melodious nuances. Cuts like "Withered (A Goodbye)" and "Losing Heart" show similarities to the work of Shai Hulud in style. But the highlight of the EP is "Twice as Sure" with its epic-esque Modern Life is War buildups and the inclusion of an acoustic guitar to wrap things up.

If you've missed out on Just Went Black up to this point, I suggest starting with this, their latest release and working your way backwards. You'll thank me later.

8.0 / 10Michael • March 3, 2008

Just Went Black – Embracing Emptiness cover artwork
Just Went Black – Embracing Emptiness — Assault, 2007

Recently-posted album reviews

Generacion Suicida

Hombre Nuevo
Vitriol (2026)

On the tail end of Autogramm’s 2018 tour of Mexico (what little I remember of that week now is a lot of pulque and not a lot of sleep) I visited the one punk record store in CDMX that I found via googling where to buy bootleg punk t-shirts. I’d already visited Venas Rotas Discos earlier on the trip and … Read more

Karen Dió

Fugaz
Hopeless (2026)

Six songs. That's all Karen Dió needs on this EP. Considering the title translates roughly to fleeting, brief, or transient in Portuguese, maybe that's exactly the point. Dió's second EP doesn't hang around long enough to overstay its welcome. It arrives, makes a hell of a lot of noise, throws some gigantic hooks at you, and disappears. But there's considerably … Read more

Real Numbers

Was It Always This Way
Slumberland Records (2026)

I feel like this may be the first 12", 10-song release in my collection from Real Numbers, a dreampop meets jangle-indie rock band from Minneapolis. I'm not going to fact check my statement, because I mean it as a metaphor. Real Numbers play exactly what you'd expect based on my short description so far, but there's always something just a … Read more