Review
Thumbscrew
Within Hearts of Redemption

Imagine It (2006) Sean L.

Thumbscrew – Within Hearts of Redemption cover artwork
Thumbscrew – Within Hearts of Redemption — Imagine It, 2006

There are a million and one spazz/metalcore bands around nowadays. And I can't name any of them besides Ed Gein, whose first record was what initially turned me off from the whole style. The bands that play this style of music are obviously apt at their instruments, but the focus is more on showing five seconds worth of technical prowess followed by incoherently distorted garbage. Don't get me wrong, I like noise and grind but the conglomeration of them doesn't come off as one part James Plotkin, one part Barney Greenway, it sounds like Daughters and Norma Jean. Unfortunately, Thumbscrew is really no different.

And, to add insult to injury, the anagram - "W.H.O.R.E." - of their record, Within Hearts of Redemption EP, is insipidly juvenile as well, and the lyrics follow suit. I got it, there's some girl you think is slutty. She's the embodiment of everything you hate and she's self-destructive. This unmasked misogyny is unnerving and bothersome. Why in the world would you bother to document such ass-backwards ideas? Hopefully every kid wearing a white belt and girls' jeans will have better sense than to endorse this.

3.0 / 10Sean L. • October 17, 2006

Thumbscrew – Within Hearts of Redemption cover artwork
Thumbscrew – Within Hearts of Redemption — Imagine It, 2006

Related news

Imagine It Signs Thumbscrew

Posted in Labels on March 1, 2006

Recently-posted album reviews

Speed

All My Angels EP
Flatspot Records, Last Ride Records (2025)

If you haven’t hopped on the SPEED train when they broke through, now is the time. The band formed in Sydney and blew past “local band” status the second the world caught up to what Australia already knew. BIPOC-fronted, community-driven, and fueled by the belief that hardcore is supposed to mean something. They went from DIY shows to global festivals … Read more

Anna von Hausswolf

Iconoclasts
Year0001 (2025)

One of the most distinct voices of the current generation, Anna von Hausswolff's sound is wide and far-reaching. From dark ambient atmospherics and organ music fixation, to noise rock momentum and neo-classical arrangements, her music always balances a primordial ritualism and contemporary applications. It is an ongoing process, one that Anna has been refining over the years. In 2018, the … Read more

Radioactivity

Time Won't Bring Me Down
Dirtnap, Wild Honey Records (2025)

"When I've had enough of modern life, I go back to my analog ways." It's a simple quote, yet it captures so much about Radioactivity. It's been 10 years since the band released Silent Kill, and this time around the Jeff Burke-led group shows clear growth and change, while still capturing the same vibe as the previous two records. In … Read more