Review: “Kill List II” by Going Off

Having shared stages with Employed to Serve, Terror and Pupil Slicer in recent times, not to mention earning a bag of chocolate coins for “Self-Hatred” from their 2023 album “What Makes You Tick?” which has 294k of Spotify streams alone, its safe to say Manchester Hardcore Punks Going Off have done the hard yards. Returning to the studio with a DIY or DIE approach, their next burnt offering is “Kill List II“, something they describe as being an unapologetic exploration of loss: of loved ones, of limbs and of past versions of yourself. Ditching their the tongue‑in‑cheek samples and punk bravado in favour of something that channels grief, rage and resilience into a cathartic noise that speaks to what it means to lose – and what it takes to keep going after everything falls apart, the follow up to 2024’s well received “Die Fast” looks like it could just be a scorcher. Did someone say two-step?

There’s a surprising amount of groove laden swagger to opening cut “Change My Life” with Huxley’s brutal vocals the single heaviest element as Going Off step up to the plate once more and hit another home run clean out of the park. While its stripped down and raw, there is something that resonates deeply within the bands sound as Huxley rants and raves about making a change like an addict who knows exactly what they need to do. Moving to a downtempo moment at the end is the icing on the metaphorical cake, circling the drain of Beatdown before the menacing “Brain Melter” rises from the black depths. Once again the vocals are savage but the aggression levels are perfectly controlled meaning there are moments for two steppers within the madness. A couple of squeals from Worrall’s guitars on “Mourning” feel like the antidote to the poison of the track, another feral ranting with Beatdown Hardcore vibes that will have you swaying like a marionette before the flames from a vicious tongue burn your grass skirt. Each track is a short, sharp shock that burns like wire as Huxley moves between subject matter, threatening to reach into the void to Grindcore but never quite going that far.

“No One Loves You” feels like it should be subtitled “so go eat worms!“, the band stepping up the pace and energy to give us a tub thumping affair that feels like it should be reducing the nearest dive bar to dust. There is even time for a little drum n’ bass before the 56 seconds is over which acts as something of a palate cleanser but won’t prepare you for the vicious “To Lose a Limb“. Rumbling bass and bludgeoning percussion accompany the Beatdown Hardcore riffs as the microphone get wielded like a butchers knife, cutting to the bone to remove the tumor before holding it aloft like a prize in bloodstained glory. The kind of nastiness that resonates with its darkness, its a stone cold winner that doesn’t stray too far from the path to achieve the bands nightmarish vision. A hint at melancholia in the opening refrain of “Scum Friend” is short lived as Going Off go for the jugular, pointing the fickle finger of fate in warning to those who have crossed them. This one actually feels like they may well squeeze more energy from it live but it works whatever the speed because it has the fierce intensity to absolutely crush. Arguably the stand out cut of this collection “Salvation” is a brutal scream-a-long that will benefit from gang chanted moments when taken into the live arena. On tape it is one to savor, the sound of a nail bomb going off at close quarters never sounded so good. There is no need to apologize [7.5/10]

Track Listing

1. Change My Life
2. Brain Melter
3. Mourning
4. No One Loves You
5. To Lose a Limb
6. Scum Friend
7. Salvation

“Kill List II” by Going Off is out 31st October 2025