Review: “Can’t Contend” by Scary Hours

In the skull of mastermind Ryan Struck, calling his band Scary Hours “Political and Introspective Punk from New Jersey” makes perfect sense. But often reality is stranger than fiction, something which came to light in 2022 when we reviewed their album “Symptoms of Modern Hegemony“. A mash up of fast 80’s Hardcore Punk like Minor Threat and Gorilla Biscuits meets the 2000’s Post-Hardcore of Glassjaw and Every Time I Die might be a better description although NoFx style Punk and Thrash Metal elements are also in the mix. Lyrical narratives ranging from personal to political with strong anti-capitalist and anti-authoritarian themes have been common place since conception, so will anything change but the shoes? In Scary Hours vocalist and multi instrumentalist Ryan Struck is aided and abetted by bassist Joe Pugsley, drummer Joe Billy and guitarist duo Nick Andriuolo and Mike Greene. Sophomore album “Can’t Contend” was recorded at Daily Grime Studio and mixed by Pete Zengerle (Carousel Kings, Hang Tight, Sentinels)…

…and make no mistake, the band come in swinging with a Metallic Hardcore intro during which Struck screams the album title over a seismic breakdown style riff that is in the same vein as “Ant Pile” from Kublai Khan. A call to the pit and a call to arms, that jab is followed by a right hook in “Reach For Me“, a Hardcore Punk rampage delivered at circle pit speed. Lyrically about growing up fatherless it doesn’t have a woe is me quality to it but does have a distinctive emotive edge and a scream-a-long vibe to accompany it’s flaming wrecking ball like sonic battery. In the atom smasher are a collection of riffs designed to add to the schizophrenia with everything moments of Death Metal, Hardcore and Metalcore blended together like the remains of a chainsaw accident. The amazing thing about that is just how well everything fits together. It’s refreshing like a cocktail that someone orders in a bar for you but looking a the ingredient list you’d never put together at home for yourself. The album title track “Can’t Contend” maintains that intensity with some savage backing vocals as the outfit race through 94 seconds of blistering riffs that get heavier in the second half. This one feels like they’ve lulled you into a false sense of security in the first half; turning around to punch you full in the face with a knuckle duster later on. Brandon Richie from Pusch adds a guest vocal and it’s pure cathartic vent all day long. Sugar. Inspired by “Manufacturing Consent” by Noam Chomsky, “Muted Mass” decimates the weak and thins the herd with its caustic abrasions, which are pure fire. What’s amazing about this one is that there is a Melodic Hardcore Punk piece of lead that adds a vibrancy to the track before the band nose dive into breakdown inspired riffage for a grand finale. It simply takes your breath away.

A little bit of hip-hop cadence from Stuck in his lyrical flow is a nice touch at the start of the punchy “Fever Dream Dossier“, a rapid fire track about the perils of organised religion and how people use God’s name to carry out some very questionable actions. Gang chants and a pummelling rhythmic dynamic add to the variety which is very much the spice of life here, how they’ve managed to ensure everything fits together like pieces of a puzzle remaining very much a mystery. Socially aware “Sturdy Beggars” is about New York City mayor Eric Adams who issued a directive allowing the NYPD to unconstitutionally detain people simply for being unhoused. An injustice called out in the best possible way, Struck acts as the voice for the voiceless keeping everyone informed as well as entertained as he spits venom and vitriol. It’s not a crime to live in poverty and with a distinctive 2000’s New York style to it, this is very much one to savour, the feedback and acoustic moment in the final moments offering a classy little respite before “Pale Moonlight” slaps you in the face like a woman scorned. An unhinged, warped spoken word depicts a dance with the devil without honour or truce, the early Glassjaw inspiration shining through as it plays out. A song about the west-backed Palestinian genocide with a sample from an interview with Ghassan Kanafani titled “Erase” brings down the curtain on this collection, Struck indulging in more hip-hop fuelled lyrical flow as he roars his way through the lyrical paper chains. An earworm riff and more unhinged vocal moments add to the flow, the breakdown heavy passages designed to draw you before the band flirt with some Deftones stylings in grand finale. All in all a phenomenal album that begs for your attention because Scary Hours achieve things that others simply dream of here [9/10]

Track Listing

1. Intro
2. Reach for Me
3. Can’t Contend
4. Muted Mass
5. Fever Dream Dossier
6. Sturdy Beggars
7. Pale Moonlight
8. Erase

“Can’t Contend” by Scary Hours is out 15th January 2025 via Pyrrhic Victory Recordings