SPLIT EP


FishComCollective

Aktiv Dödshjälp / Slaktattack split Author: Goran
Crustcore bands Aktiv Dödshjälp and Slackattack combine forces on their first official, non-demo release. AD starts off with a few tracks, and is able to convey both the aggressive nature of the whole and the catchy groove of the rhythms through their thick, crispy sound. Even the melodic lines in “Misstro” have a full impact, for being in a fuzzy and harsh production. Convincing songs, to say the least. Slaktattack follows, with six one-minute songs. While having the same basic drive as AD, there are a few differences as well: the vocals are more ‘clean’ (i.e. yelled instead of screamed), and the production is a tad more polished as well, but because of that, also less brutal and grasping. Both bands are at about the same level of songwriting, but there’s that touch of heaviness lacking with Slacktattack, that makes AD so powerful. Ofcourse, if you prefer groove over brutality, you might as well favor Slacktattack more. In any case, both bands know what they’re doing, so decent crustcore is what you’ll get.

Vampire Magazine

The label ’Evigt Lidande Productions’, which had also provided the world with the great grindcoreband Splitter, have now unleashed a 7” single proving punk’s not dead in Sweden. ”Aktiv Dödshjälp” (meaning Euthanasia) is a furious Swedish crossover combo which in their case is a mixture of death metal, hardcore and very typical Swedish screaming grunts. The band delivers 3 crossover songs just exceeding two minutes each which have some good (deathmetal) riffs (’Misstro’) and a great pace. The band finish their set with the very Repulsion/Napalm Death/Agathocles orientated 34 second tune ’Pikkulepiä’. ”Slaktattack” are a crustcore/punk band who are very - and I mean VERY - fond of Discharge, Kaaos and AntiCimex. The vocals are not too extreme and therefor very old school. The song ’Materiell Tristess’ really stands out here due to the - for crustcore standards - interesting guitar interaction. An interesting release by two new energetic bands proving Sweden still harbours quality in all metal (and punk) genres. So all you underground punk/grind/crust festival booking agencies: here are two new names for ya!
//Isaak

Minacious

This is one of the few times in my life that I have had to review a crust bands, and this is a genre that I know very little about. I can honestly say that I have only clear sonic memories of listening to crust a few times, and the band that has been playing then have always been Skitsystem. And I must say that the opening band on this EP Aktiv dödshjälp reminds me of said band, but not to the extent that I can claim that they are clones of the band, nor meek carbon copies, they have a voice of their own. Great screamer that vomits out lyrics about the everyday misery. Interesting stuff, aggressive, hate filled and full of angst and despise.
Then after four short tracks (hey, they are crust and they are supposed to fit on a 7”) I get hit in the face by another fist of aggression. But this time the is more punk. This is really raw shit, fast, intense and aggressive, unfortunately I know less about this music then I know about crust (how that could happen I have no idea) but if you like raw and intense punk with shrieked vocals and great riffing this will most likely tickle your fancy. And if you want to know how to pronounce the labels name put on track 6 ”Evigt lidande” and listen to the ”chorus”. I have to admit that this is not my preferred genres but the sheer aggression and brutality makes this really enjoyable, but I think this is more for the punk/crust crowd then for the Metalheads.
//Mordant

Rise and subvert

After 2 demos from Aktiv Dödshjälp they are now finally on vinyl. One thing that struk me is that they have crossed the line from playing hardcore with metal influences to a metalband with hardcore influences. Not that it’s a bad thing though since they are doing it very good. But it tend to be alittle too much at some points. The intro to ”Jag välkomnar slutet” however is fucking great and a totally brilliant way to introduce the listener to this split 7”. One of the positive things with Aktiv Dödshjälp is the diversity of influences through the songs which makes it alot more interesting to listen to. Among the influences you will find a grinding inferno in ”Tungsinnets träl”, a pure deathmetal-soaked crustcore track in ”Misstro” and last but not least a chaotic grindsong in finnish (”Pikkulepiä”). Slaktattack on the other hand was new to me and they really surprised me. I thought that this kind of hardcore punk was forgotten a long time ago and that we had seen the end of new bands in this genre. For all the fans of good old scandinavian hardcore, you’re in for a treat. Slaktattack delivers 6 tracks of raging, in-your-face hardcore punk and I know that this 7” inch will do alot of time in my stereo.
//Sonny

Noise Master Zine

Promo CD-r nosic obsahuje split dvou švédských kapel. Tento materiál vyšel jako split 7ep v obvyklém 500 kusovém nákladu. AKTIV DODSHJALP znamená euthanasie a SLAKTATTACK zabijáckej útok. A.D. zde mají 4 skladby, sousedi o dve více a hnedka druhá od SLAKTATTACK se jmenuje stejne jako label, který toto split vydal. A.D. hrají metalický crust, který se už tak moc neslyší. Je to taková smeska anglického crustu s dobrým zvukem. Songy nejsou dlouhý a tak se tenhle metalický crust poslouchá úplne skvele. Krajani na to jdou trochu jinak, a to pres disbeat. Totální crust kolovrátek, který je tak typický na old Sweden / Finland kapely. Typický zvuk, typický sólícka, proste paráda... Zvuk je kapánek slabší, ale jinak obe kapely jsou parádní!!! Rozhodne tento split má co ríci....

Brutalism

This split is supposed to come out as a 7” vinyl disc but it has been delayed. In the meantime I listened to a CDr with these two crustcore bands from Sweden. Aktiv Dodshjalp (Euthanesia) was founded in 2004 and 2 weeks later they already recorded a 6 track demo. After another demo in 2005 now realing their side of this split. 4 Tracks that are filled with anger, fury and frustration. Lyrics are shouted out raw and in their native language. Songs clocking around 2 mins and in high tempo with minor breakdowns. Guitarriffs are melody raging with no leads but the vocals are in front the most. Slaktattack is also from Sweden and is on the B-side. The band exists 2 years more and also released some demos. In 2005 they recorded 10 new songs and 6 of them you can listen to. 3 Guitarmembers is a bit too much otherwise the riffs and leads should be more awesome. Slakattack is a bit more punk orientated with hardcore edges. Less raw vocals also in high tempo. This split is for the fans in the first place and you decide yourself by listening to the MP3s.

Metal Heart

I takt med att musik utvecklas ter det sig allt oftare naturligt att låta disparata stilyttringar mötas någonstans på vägen. För att göra en distinktion är inte längre punk och hårdrock två åtskilda företeelser (givetvis har det inte alltid varit det tidigare heller). Släng ett öra på Skitsystems senaste fullängdare Stigmata och ni bör förstå vart jag vill komma. Det är ett band som tveklöst har rötterna i punken, men som till dags dato hämtar sin inspiration minst lika mycket från metalscenen. Det norrländska kollektivet Totalt Jävla Mörker är ett annat exempel på dylik genreupplösning. Och om man vänder på steken och ser det hela ur ett omvänt perspektiv kan den norska black metal-pionjären Darkthrones senaste fullängdsverk The Cult Is Alive nämnas: ett black metal-gäng i grunden som på aktuella alster låter mer punk, eller för den delen rock’n’roll, än metal.

Nu kan Aktiv Dödshjälp, bildat i januari 2004, adderas till den listan. Med basen rotad i punkscenen värker duon, vars medlemmar huserar i Finspång och Lund, fram stenhård crust som i själva verket är mer metal än punk. Likheterna med ovannämnda svenska band är stundom påtaglig, men i manglet går det även att skönja såväl Kontrovers som Finspångs forna storhet Edge Of Sanity. Slingorna i utmärkta ”Misstro” är faktiskt något som den svenska dödslegendaren skulle kunna ha knåpat ihop en gång i tiden.

På den andra sidan av denna sjutummare – själv får jag dock nöja mig med att lyssna på cd-r-utgåvan eftersom utgivningen av vinylformatet blivit försenat – återfinns sex spår med den Göteborgsbaserade sextetten Slaktattack. Detta manskap har valt att, till skillnad från Aktiv Dödshjälp, så gott som helt och hållet exkludera metalinfluenser. Detta är helt enkelt crustpunk i samma skola som Anatomi-71 och Diskonto. Inga krusiduller, ingen påtaglig originalitet, bara ren och skär argsint, svensksjungen råpunk. Vissa kanske lär höja ett ögonbryn eller två åt att jag tilldelar ett så pass högt betyg som åtta till en split-skiva, men faktum är att det inte finns något negativt med denna utgåva. Fjorton minuter är precis lagom mycket utrymme för två band av det här slaget, och därmed kan ni glömma uttrycket mer musik för pengarna; addera i stället klyschan less is more. Dessutom anser jag att dessa två grupper kompletterar varandra perfekt, de är inte för olika för att kännas malplacerade bredvid varandra, men inte heller alltför likriktade för att resultatet ska kännas enahanda. Värt som fan.

8/10