The 2016 Arsies: January 6, 2016

January 6, 2016

Noooooiiiisssssseeeee! That's the name of today's glorious game. Short (60 minutes between both albums) but definitely not sweet. 1-2-3-4-GO!
Mutoid Man start things up with Bleeder, a ferocious half hour from a band that spends not an insignificant amount of energy seeming to wrestle among themselves (but who nevertheless have more than enough energy leftover to kick your teeth in). That is to say, Bleeder's power move is to fuse mindless aggression with surprising dexterity, and they wield it in every song. It's like the best parts of The Jesus Lizard and Entombed, distilled and fortified with extra anger issues. Or like emergency surgery without anaesthesia.
This is bad news for White Widows Pact. On any other day, their debut album True Will would likely score big points for their brute-force grindcore approach, no matter who their rivals might be. But what might otherwise come across as clever retro fun, today comes across more Neanderthaloid by comparison. Not to say that WWP isn't still fun (and I've gotta imagine that they put on a great show with a ruthless pit). It's just that, if I had to see one of these bands as an opener for the other, I already know how I'd like that bill to work out. Congrats to Mutoid Man!
Tomorrow, two other rough and ready opponents go at it: Noisem and Turnstile!