Madball
Not Your Kingdom
Nuclear Blast Records
When hardcore spread around the globe in the 1980s, it morphed en route, absorbing its surroundings, and the regional scene that evolved in New York had an emphasis on hard. Bands such as Agnostic Front and Warzone developed a fast, aggressive sound, and the ultimate distillation of this style was Madball. Born from tough streets (back when New York was a lot more Taxi Driver), they had an equally gritty sound, and time has done little to dilute its power; if proof were needed, look no further than their tenth long player, Not Your Kingdom. In many ways, this is typical Madball; the songs are red-hot furnace blasts that are visceral and corrosive, yet it continues their tradition of pushing at genre boundaries and throwing something new into the mix. As such, this is their most diverse album since 2000’s Hold It Down. In addition to old school, Oi!-inspired anthems such as ‘Rebel Kids’ and ‘Life’s A Mural’, there are pure hardcore explosions (‘Flammable’) and metallic stompers (‘Family First’). Still, it’s curveballs like ‘Rebelude’ and ‘Don’t MisStep’ that elevate Not Your Kingdom above its peers and prove that when it comes to hardcore, there’s none tougher than Madball.
Review by Peter Dennis