Band : Sayyadina
Album title : The Great Northern Revisited
Label : Relapse Records
Distributor : Rough Trade Benelux
Release date : 16/03/2010
Release : Compilation CD & LP

Okay, a shortie? (Hahah, even my shorties have a tendency to give the reader some food for reading…and hopefully, for thought!) I made my acquaintance with this Swedish Grindcore trio, consisting of singer/ guitarist Jon Lindqvist, bassist/ singer Andreas Erikkson, and drummer Ove Wiksten, with the 2002 Relapse Records compilation Swedish Assault…and immediately a kinship to fellow Swedes Nasum became apparent in the way the band combined ultra-brutality with a sense for melody. Not surprising, as the band members already had some experience in the field, being one part member of Victims, one-part member of General Surgery, and one part ex-Nasum!

Formed in 2000, they had already released tracks on the Stockholm 2001 Crust/ Hardcore compilation tape, contributed tracks to the 2002 Polargrinder compilation album, and released a split 7-inch with Bruce Banner on the Putrid Filth Conspiracy label…and following the Swedish Assault compilation, they continued to release the 7-inch Solace Denied, it was a collaboration between Putrid Filth and Sound Of Betrayal Records) in April 2002. The label collaboration continued for May 2003’s split 7-inch with Japan’s No Value, and that same year also saw the release of full-length debut Fear Gave Us Wings through the Yellow Dog Records imprint (an album also released worldwide through Relapse in Nov. 2004). ‘t Was some time waiting for the follow-up, but in 2006 Mourning the Unknown was released through Sound Pollution for Scandinavia (had already distributed the previous album) and again Relapse for the rest of the world (but only in March 2007). In all honesty, I failed to follow up on the band’s career, and neither did our Death/ Black Metal specialist…but then the website’s connections with Relapse weren’t always as well as could be!

With The Great Northern Revisited Relapse compiles the tracks from the Bruce Banner split, the Swedish Assault sampler, the Solace Denied 7-inch, and the band’s songs on the Polargrinder compilation. To make things even more interesting the band added 4 new songs, making for a 30-track album lasting just under 36 excrusiating but highly enjoyable minutes…if you’re into this kind of brutal music, of course! If you’re into Extreme Metal, dó check out some of the band’s songs at myspace.com/sayyadinagrindcore! A compilation, so no rating, but you can be sure to find the album in my year-lists!

Tony.