Review / 200 Words Or Less
Offsides
It's a Struggle to Communicate

Get Outta Town (2008) Michael

Offsides – It's a Struggle to Communicate cover artwork
Offsides – It's a Struggle to Communicate — Get Outta Town, 2008

Here's something new for you. Well maybe not new, but something we don't get much of these days. Offsides is a fast-paced melodic hardcore group from Connecticut with a female front-person. It's a Struggle to Communicate is the band's latest offering, a six-song EP.

Musically the group draws influence from legendary groups like 7 Seconds and Gorilla Biscuits. The music is charged with energetic drumming and some sweet riffing. You get some nice scorching riffs, but you also get bouncing melodies as well. It's a nice mix and contrast, which gives the EP a lot of personality.

Where the band will obviously distinguish themselves is with Danielle Allen's vocals. A female-fronted hardcore band isn't exactly an everyday thing in the macho world that is hardcore (don't act like it is). But regardless of her sex, Allen's deliver works extremely well with the sound quickly fired slightly higher-pitched shouts. Lyrically things cover social issues, another thing she has up on a lot of her peers.

If fast hardcore is your deal, check this out. Offsides write some slick tunes, and they have something worth listening to lyrically as well.

7.0 / 10Michael • August 3, 2008

Offsides – It's a Struggle to Communicate cover artwork
Offsides – It's a Struggle to Communicate — Get Outta Town, 2008

Related news

No Harm Done / Offsides Split 7"

Posted in Records on June 25, 2009

Recently-posted album reviews

Place Position

Went Silent
Blind Rage Records, Bunker Park, Poptek, Sweet Cheetah (2026)

There’s a certain kind of band that makes sense immediately once you see them live. Place Position is one of those bands. Before Went Silent ever landed on my speakers, I caught them at a show I played in Dayton, and they were the kind of band that quietly steals the night. There were no theatrics, no posturing, just total … Read more

Twenty One Children

After The Storm EP
Slovenly (2025)

Hailing and wailing from Soweto, South Africa, rising from the ashes After The Storm comes pounding like a fierce berg wind. Don’t let this trigger your ancraophobia; they are only here (hear) to rip your sagging, middle-aged flesh from your living corpsicle sonically. Ah, Daddy—yes, Son—tell us about a time when punk was raw, dangerous, and would generally stomp your … Read more

Awful Din

Anti Body
We’re Trying Records (2026)

There’s a certain honesty that only comes from bands who’ve spent years playing to half-filled rooms, basements with bad wiring, and bars where the PA is optional. ANTI BODY, the new LP from Brooklyn emo punks Awful Din, sounds like it was built in those spaces. Not as a gimmick, but as lived experience. This is a record that feels … Read more