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Released on September 4, 2015 via Good Fight Music
Axis caught my attention back when they appeared on a split 7″ with infamous Self Defense Family, who in their plethora of releases have displayed the force of many an unbeknown hardcore act on the b-side. On this 7″, Least Violent Time In Human History, Axis managed to single themselves out as a U.S. hardcore band to watch, the sheer aggression in their style was infectious yet crushing. Since then I have backtracked all the demos and splits they’ve done, so I was anticipating this debut full-length very highly.
‘Graze The Fire’ gives you no time to prepare for the barrage of pummelling drums and slamming guitars. Rafael Morales’ vocals are in your face and fuelled with rage, just as you’d expect with hardcore of this style. The full throttle crush of riff upon riff and rolling drum beats cascade effortlessly into ‘Discouraged’, a stand out track amongst the overall onslaught of the album. Lone guitar breaks the middle of the track, making it dynamic in structure whilst maintaining the intensity fit for wind milling uncontrollably.
The title track is likely to be a favourite in the live setting, drums pound through out making room for perfectly executed breakdowns, Axis are highly successful in allowing the adrenaline and rage to show through these tracks on Show Your Greed, which is what keeps them engaging through the short run time of this record.
This leads me to the production, as what kept me listening to Axis was the rawness paired with this rage that is bearing its teeth so obviously in their sound. However Show Your Greed is far more fine tuned as opposed to the more thick and muddy take on things on Least Violent Time In Human History. It’s so easy to go down the road of “ugh it’s all so clean now”, but I feel half of Axis’ charm was in the production. It was burying and suffocating, leaving the listener gasping for breath after just 2 tracks on this previous release. Show Your Greed would have been a new level of savagery in modern U.S. hardcore if maybe they had stuck with the production on this great set of tracks.
Getting past this though, you can’t help but commend the band amongst the white noise of newer U.S. hardcore acts. I always find myself returning to their previous releases for an overdose of well executed hardcore that sticks to its roots. Show Your Greed is no exception, a barrage from front to back that solidifies Axis as band who will inevitably grow to establish themselves in a flooded scene.
