| CD REVIEW Madball |
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Band : Madball You know, I could've sworn I'd reviewed a Madball album at least once before, but a short research showed I would've sworn in the conviction that I was not! When push came to shove, I didn't even find a review on this website for the band's previous album, 2007's Infiltrate The System. High time we give the reader a short history of the band then, right? (those interested in a more detailed report are urged to check the band's page at Wikipedia, whence this more compact version was drawn) You see, Metallic hardcore band Madball originated in 1988, and consisted of most of Agnostic Front's members with AF's singer Roger Miret on bass, Vinnie Stigma on guitar, and Will Shepler on drums. Singer would be Miret's younger (half-)brother Freddie Cricien (then aged only 8), and the band did its first gigs playing unused AF songs. Following the release of the band's debut EP Ball Of Destruction in 1989, and the Droppin' Many Suckers EP in 1992, the band added second guitarist Matt Henderson. A year later Miret left to be replaced by Cricien's long-time friend Hoya Roc.Having played regional shows in the New York area until then, Madball singed to Roadrunner Records in 1994, breaking outside their hometown with regular touring for the genre's now classic albums Set In-t Off (1994) and Demonstrating My Style (1996). In the years that followed, the band changed line-ups rather frequently (Roc and evidently Cricien being the mainstays), as well as changed labels. The list of releases? A contribution to the 1996 compilation N.Y.H.C. Documentary Soundtrack, 1998's Look My Way, 2000's Hold It Down, the 2003 compilation Best Of Madball, 2004 EP N.Y.H.C., 2005's Legacy, and the aforementioned 2007 Infiltrate The System. The band briefly broke up from early 2001 to late 2002, and when they returned it was with guitarist Mitts in their midst. Today's line-up consists of Cricien, Roc (the two in the meantime also having been or still active in Hazen Street), guitarist Mitts, and drummer Igor (from Holland's Backfire!), although it was one Jay Weinberg whom joined the band for the recording of the album and consequent touring (his dismissal was announced in September of last). Unusually, for the recordings of their new album Madball chose to work with a Metal producer, namely the Eric Rutan, renowned for his work in Death Metal circles. You see, the producer the band used for their last albums was othersize engaged, and in the list of other possibilities Rutan's name was mentioned. In an interview between him and Cricien, the latter found out that Rutan actually has a Hardcore background, and is in fact a Madball fan. That evidently intrigued Cricien, as did the production ideas the eager Rutan had (bigger sound, but away from his usual Death Metal productions). As a result, the new Madball album is bigger sounding, more in-your-face and pounding than ever, but still a Madball album throughout! Although seen as street hoods in the past, history has turned on this quartet, today known as “The Kings Of N.Y.H.C.”...Kings of N.Y.H.C. they always were, Kings of N.Y.H.C. they will remain as long as they'll be around! To give you an inkling of an idea of what the new album sounds like, the guys posted 3 of the album's 16 songs at myspace.com/madball...you naughty teasers! If you haven't bought the album yet (after all it will been out on the street and in the stores for a couple of weeks by the time you read this) go get it now...or start calling yourself a fan of Metallic Hardcore! Yeah Baby, year-list material...of course!!! 98/100 Tony. |
