Sons of Northwestern Darkness: Scourge Schematic

I like that my town seems to have a surging crust/grind/death scene. Theories and Bloodhunger come to mind. This is something that I didn’t really experience growing up, nor would i, being a snot nosed melodeath kid, have been musically interested at the time. Slugging through weeks where both competence and good will are tough to come by, it’s nice to know there are other pissed off people around and that they can do something more constructive with it than just lace a few profanities together. Enter Scourge Schematic. They are busy blasting away at a very surgical brand of deathgrind accented by slam-happy moments and a four headed hydra of brocals. Their debut EP Life Savings is (quite appropriately) a “name your price” deal.

One thing that Scourge Schematic seem to understand is that deathgrind, as chaotic as it may be, shouldn’t be muffled. The frenzied grind moments of “C.O.P” and “Nailbiter” are interspersed with slammy chugging riffs that show some obvious influences from late 90s and early 00s brutal death metal. “Puncture” and “Volunteers” have a little melody and more blasting. There are also plenty of driving moments that lean further to the punk side of grind and couldn’t be more well-timed.  The EP’s most salient moments come on the closing “Inhuman Badass”; the first part of the song is a bruising, harmonic-speckled pummeler. A few wild blasts later and you find yourself listening to some blackened melodies and lead guitar. And before ya know it the whole mindfuck of organized pandemonium is over. Admittedly, I haven’t been much of a grind aficionado since listening to Napalm Death, Nasum and Pig Destroyer in my very early metal days. These days I’ve been forced to immerse myself in its maniacal charm yet again as awesome bands like this one contact me to beat me over the head with their records until I see the light. Speaking of enlightenment, if we pay our bands, they’ll put out more stuff and play more gigs (they serve beer there!). So, go to their bandcamp page and cough up a few dead presidents because, though you’re free to pay whatever you want, think of dropping a few extra bones as an investment in punishing those pesky braincells of yours.

8/10