Review: Self-Titled EP from “MSRY”

The debut EP from Oxford’s self deprecating MSRY (pronounced “Misery”) who by their own definition create Miserable Hardcore. The Trio have new material on the way, and we’ve heard “Safety First” and “Broken Teeth” from the upcoming album, so what does their 2017 debut EP sound like?

The bands “Intro” track is an almost needless thing on a 6 track EP. It’s the sound of feedback with a slow pulsing heart in before under laying in the intro riffage of first track proper “Death Party”. Merging the two would suit the EP better and while it’s an attempt at building atmosphere, it doesn’t really do that much. “Death Party” on the other hand has a solid bouncy bassline and some riffage that will have you banging your head. Some guitar squeals around the chorus are a welcome addition to the chugging main riff. It might not be anything that hasn’t been done before, but it’s got plenty going for it as a tone setter. “Bloom” then leaps into Melodic post-hardcore at a pace which is almost in stark contrast to the opening track. Indeed if you didn’t recognise the vocals, you might think it was another band. The song is saved somewhat by a pullback and breakdown with over laying police siren but it’s fairly short lived before we pile back into the chorus. “False Flags” then makes another stylistic leap, this time into Cancer Bats territory with a “Hail Destroyer” album vibe throughout. It’s a not a bad song as such, it’s just that after 3 songs so stylistically different you begin to wonder how far the experimentation will go. “Home” then manages to stitch the Cancer Bats sound with the Melodic post-hardcore lead guitar work of “Bloom”. It’s sing-a-long chorus of “there is no place like home” will no doubt gain some fans. “Dance Slow” then continues the sound of “Home” and it appears the and have found their sound by the end of a very mixed bag of an EP. [3.5/10]