LESSER BEINGS by W/OE

Six years after the release of their self titled, Oklahoma's premier grindcore and or power violence group (and one of Natty's favorite "local" bands), the hardcore soaked, face pummeling duo, WITHOUT EMPATHY (aka WOE aka W/OE), have finally returned to grace our ears with riffs and blasts of the utmost foul nature.

For those unfamiliar, W/OE are more or less the supreme collaging of all the best parts of the greater umbrella of extreme punk music. The blasts of blistering grind are there, the breakdowns of the heaviest beatdown bands slam you in the head, the conscious, pinpoint lyricism of the most pissed and frustrated power violence acts keeps you dialed in, and to top it all off, their music is littered with comical samples, highly technical playing, and vocal styles spanning pv-tough-guy-yells to goregrind pitch shifts. They're a perfect band.

LESSER BEINGS is an exceptional display of anger and the subtle complexities of extreme music performance while addressing ongoing social and political issues within the land of Oklahoma and the state fabricated plights endured by its people; it recognizes Oklahoma as a microcosmic reflection of the national chaos, corruption, and disarray that impacts the lives of individuals all over the world. LESSER BEINGS also sees an expansion of the sonic palate of WITHOUT EMPATHY. They're not necessarily dramatic changes (as WOE has always been a band willing to push the envelope and implement out-of-the-box writing and playing styles), however they are markedly distinguished from their self titled. Though a somewhat avant-garde inclination has always towed beneath the surface of WOE, we see it surfacing a little more plainly on LESSER BEINGS with increased fervent, noisy, freeplay-esque moments, as well as a very surprising use of droney clean vocals singing "Ring-Around-The-Rosies" accompanied by guest vocals and a toy keyboard outro.

Overall, WITHOUT EMPATHY once again delivers, without single fault, an exceptional piece of aggressive. heavy music. Their capacity to aggregate and amalgamate so many stylistic tropes of extreme punk music so succinctly and masterfully is, as usual, the highlight of their songwriting and the band's greatest strength. To top it all off, their highly regionalized and recognizable Oklahoma flare provides an additional degree of uniqueness that sets them aside from the sea of grind and pv bands so widely proliferated in our day and age. A delicious return from arguably the Midsouth's best, a contender for heavy music's album of the year.

Cult Love is a 501c3 nonprofit committed to the platforming, preservation, and proliferation of underground communities and culture.

Rare and limited releases of all genres since 2015.

cultlovesoundtapes.com
Instagram
Facebook
YouTube