Seizure Crypt     

You've Been Had
316 Productions 2012

NYC crossover hardcore thrash veterans Seizure Crypt return for their third and most ambitious album to date, You've Been Had.  Meaty riffs smack you in the face immediately as Supernatural gets the ball rolling.  Then some strange guitar noodling is juxtaposed against a massive bass guitar and demented vocal patterns.  I almost get the same feeling as Ludichrist covering Voivod.  Then the real bowels of the album are exposed with Bigger Than Politics.  Total New York hardcore volleys are unleashed as the song strikes hard and multiple vocalists dance around each other.  Spastic Summer strikes immediately afterwards and refuses to allow the listener to gain their balance.  Serious and violent riffs are intertwined with passages of scathing humor and off-the-wall songwriting.  It's almost as if Sick Of It All were injecting nursery rhymes into their stoic style.  One Way has a steamroller of a main riff that gives way to some thrashy shredding and a hammering beat.  Dark Black And Blue slows things down to a snail's crawl while utilizing an angry tone that brings to mind bands like Slapshot.  Then the song sprints at breakneck speed to deliver some bone-shattering violence.  Perfectly capturing the band's twisted sense of humor is Seizure Crypt vs. The Devil with its slow build-up and hyper riff demolition that accompanies the whimsical lyrics.  An initial thrash riff and the everpresent multiple vocalists set up a chorus that kicks you like a boot to the face on Not For Everyone.  A slew of riff patterns coming at you a mile a minute keeps you guessing until the final passage of ambient drone that closes out the album.  Seizure Crypt's new album is nice balance of sardonic humor and muscular hardcore that sets you up for a joke, and the joke is that you are gonna get beat down.  You've Been Had is lightning fast and will leave you battered and bruised, but with a smile on your face.  See you in the intensive care unit.