It has been said that the most accurate way to get a sense of a certain time or place is by looking at the art that is created. If this is true then based on this album we are in serious trouble. For in this foul year of our lord 2019 Shock Narcotic feels less like a band and more like an emotional response to the world we find ourselves in.
The album opens with a nightmarish Orwellian fever dream of a title track, with layer upon layer of terrifying vocals that build before slamming into a full on attack of rage-filled grindcore. With Fourteen tracks just shy of twenty minutes this album doesn’t hang around and has no time for subtlety. The band have a skill for managing to walk that fine line between old and new, of having plenty of respect for the past but still being unique enough to add the own slant. Like the rest of the Housecore line up, the home of Eyehategod amongst others, there is a distinct feeling of grime and dirt on this album, giving the impression of it having just crawled out of a gutter dripping with pure nihilism and bile. It’s interesting to see the different directions the Dillinger alumni have headed since they disbanded in 2016. The only semblance musically between this and Jeff Tuttle’s former day job in Dillinger is the ability to push the sound just to the point of collapse without going past it.
The savagery on offer here has to be heard to be believed. Every chord, blast beat and hate filled vocal is there for one purpose only, to cause maximum carnage in the shortest amount of time. It’s a good time for grindcore and Shock Narcotic are here to show they belong at the forefront of the pack.
I Have Seen the Future And It Doesn’t Work is available now and can be purchased here.
Words: Nathan Tyler
