Review: “Pretentious Pain” by Replacer

Describing themselves as Aggregated Beatdown, a sub-genre that sits in the centre of the Bermuda triangle of Deathcore, Metallic Hardcore and Hardcore are Replacer, a quintet comprising vocalist Barney Warner, guitarists Ben Campion and Nathan Jasiewicz alongside the rhythm section of bassist Ewan Riddell and drummer Chris Silvester-Beale and hailing from Guildford in leafy Surrey. In 2019 they dropped their debut EP, one called “Pretentious Pain“, long before Barney Warner teamed up with Ben Mason from Bound In Fear and formed Geezercore side project Pintglass…

…the eerie haunting horror film score introduction piece to “Scars” sets everything on edge with the kind of vicious intent that a woman scorned has as she stabs you in the back before the crushing Downtempo Deathcore brute of a track kicks in for a single spine shank of a verse that rattles around your brain like a bullet ricochet. “Circle Of Cowards” then steps things up with a whole new level of aggression and plentiful Beatdown Hardcore groove that slows perfectly for a skull crushing Downtempo closing that is so incendiary it turns a train wreck into a towering inferno in seconds. The first of two guest appearances sees Donovan Lee of Endings lend his throat to “Sheep” which is again another step up in the blunt force trauma as Slam vocal parts enter the fray, which is the equivalent of bringing a breeze block to a brick fight. The lyrical insight into people who are blindly following is also one that resonates, once you’ve picked yourself up off the floor that is. “Bruiser” brings out the Downtempo Deathcore riffs in spades and was the first ever single the band dropped, soaked in horror atmospherics and making for a Mosh Pit classic. Tag teaming in Brad Harkness of Revelations for “Exit Obsession“, a ferocious rager of bludgeoning intent that raises the middle finger as it sees through the thinly veiled woe is me bullshit that is dragging everyone down. As an EP it slaps hard with all the hallmarks of the sub-genre plus a few of their own. Replacer have inked a formula for rage in its purest form [7.5/10]

Track listing

1. Scars
2. Circle Of Cowards
3. Sheep (ft. Donovan Lee of Endings)
4. Bruiser
5. Exit Obsession (ft. Brad Harkness of Revelations)

“Pretentious Pain” by Replacer is out now and available over at bandcamp