Reviews

Suspected of Arson

Bad Jesus Experience VII 10″

It seems that BAD JESUS EXPERIENCE has been around for a while, though this is my first encounter with their brand of chaotic, emotive hardcore. Off-kilter, angular, and discordant, BAD JESUS EXPERIENCE is the 2026 Finnish response to ’90s screamo like ONE EYED GOD PROPHECY, OTTAWA, ORCHID, THREE STUDIES FOR A CRUCIFIXION, etc. The most abrasive aspects of the genre propel this forward at a pace that feels pregnant with urgency and franticism, rooted in what was called emo before the term became associated with swoopy haircuts and teenage mall goths. Tough to endorse a band that calls themselves BAD JESUS EXPERIENCE, and the cover art is equally atrocious, but if you get down with any of the aforementioned bands, then you can probably look past those transgressions.

Cold Hell / Corrosion Exposure split EP

Here’s a gnarly hardcore ripper out of Finland that will leave you ice cold. You know it’s going to be a good one when you think the record player is on the wrong speed, but nope, the band just sounds like that. That’s what happened when I put on the COLD HELL side and was instantly assaulted by squealing feedback and way too fast blast beats. This is straight up power-fucking-violence done in the West Coast style. Raw and raging! With no blast beats and more mosh-centric breakdowns, CORROSION has more of a East Coast hardcore style but they are just as raw and vicious in their execution, just like all the bands the West Coast powerviolence bands loved. Kind of like a sub-genre stylistic exploration. So, if you like INFEST and the bands that influenced them, then check this one out.