“In a world of uncertainty, what lies outside of you and me?”
New York City has a vibrant hardcore punk scene, giving home to young bands like Combust, The Fight or Ekulu. The latter just released their first ever full length, „Unscrew My Head“, over Cash Only Records. After releasing their self titled EP, which was one of the best in 2018, Ekulu not only toured with Candy, played festivals like Sound And Fury or United Blood, they also flew across the atlantic ocean to play shows in London and Stockholm.
The excitement for their first full length was pretty high, as the band features (ex-)members of Coundown, Candy, Illusion and Glory. But let’s say one thing in advance: Ekulu not only meet the expectations, they even exceeded them with “Unscrew My Head”.
Right after the three minute long instrumental intro „New Life Jam“, Ekulu start right off with „Proven Wrong“. If you know Ekulu from their previous releases, you‘ll immidiatly relalize the more melodic edge and range on the vocals of singer Chris Wilson. This, combined with the dynamic riffing, makes „Proven Wrong“ a perfect NYHC song with reminiscences of all the old heroes. It‘s melodic, but still hard. Not many bands are capeable of doing both things on such a high level like Ekulu.
But that‘s by far not everything: The re-recorded version of 2019‘s „Half Alive“ sounds even better than two years ago. And that already was one of the best songs of that particular year. When Wilson yells „I cant decide“ and the solo hits your ears, you simply have to scream, shred and mosh along.
Maybe Ekulu are the new heroes New York Hardcore needs so badly. Songs like „Proven Wrong“, which is a classic NYHC stomper, or the first single „Pick Your Fight“, which is a straight forward two minute rager that builds up constantly until the immense breakdown hits, showcase that the band has mastered their art. Ekulu are combining the classic NYHC vibe that bands like Cro Mags and Leeway made famous in the late 80s and early 90s, threw a bit of clevo style riffing (Integrity!) in and serve a well rounded mix of real core music.
Recorded by mastermind Athur Rizk (Eternal Champion, Power Trip, Iron Age), the sound is really on point and ticks all the boxes. The bass has the best sound of any hardcore record of the last years, the drums sound is sick and the variety of Wilson’s vocals is phenomenal.
„Unscrew My Head“ marks a new age for the New York City hardcore unit. It was two years in the making, features an amazing artwork by singer Chris Wilson and a flawless production. Imagine Iron Age with a touch of early Cro Mags and a mix of Aaron Bedard from Bane and George Hirsch from Blacklisted on vocals, that‘s what you get when you listen to „Unscrew My Head“. This record is exactly what keeps people pumped about hardcore.
Memory Screen * 