21st January 2020

Review: “Through Fire” EP by Antagonist A.D.

Antagonist A.D will no doubt have big thanks to give Converge guitarist Kurt Ballou who recorded and mixed “Through Fire” at his very own God City Studios, while Brad Boatright handled the Mastering situation over at Audiosiege. The Auckland and Hamilton based band have been around for at least 15 years, debuting “These Cities, Our Graves” back in 2006. Known for taking the heavy and abrasive early Metalcore sound and injecting it into Hardcore, their ethical standpoint is the foundation on which they build. Lyrics about the disease of modern society destroying the planet have been interweaved into their entire output.

From the feedback comes the fury with “Gates Of Hell” taking a typical 2003 era Metalcore gallop and energy with a huge drum sound. The screams of “What does it take to wake you up?” resonate like a bullet ricochet in the skull and that vibe continues into “Pure Fear“. The socially and politically aware lyrics are a knuckle duster punch in the face and there are some distinctive Thrash roots on show. The band cite Arkangel, Disembodied and Until The End as influences and it’s it’s obvious why. Building on atmosphere, “Bloom” has a couple of choice dramatic drop offs before putting the pedal to the Metal once more and Antagonist A.D. absolutely love breakdown riffs. They could be touring with any new coming act and give them a run for their money because their sound isn’t dated. “A.M.P.D.” takes some inspiration from Slayer and brings it to the plate as the band get heavy and fast, hammering through the track at breakneck speed. “No Justice” is more of a New York Hardcore track with a cleaner vocal bark and a 1994 Biohazard vibe to it. Guitar squeals and breakdowns a plenty, it’s a ripper of a cut. There is only one problem with “Through Fire” and that is that it is criminally short. You just want more material because this oozes mosh pit friendly quality. Fortunately, the band have a rich back catalogue to dive into [8.5/10]