Bottomfed

Bottomfed is a three piece hardcore/metal band who’s been making music for a few years now. I first got wind of them in 2015 with their EP Impatient Pile Of Bones. It was a hard hitting EP that showed a lot of passion potential for the young band, so I implore you to give that a listen if you’re looking for a hardcore band. The trio is on one-half of this two track EP with the emotional track Blackened Angel. It’s a blistering track that features rapid drumming, fast paced guitars with low-end bass. The vocals are a mix of throaty cleans and deep growls. The songs actually addressing the harshness of a sudden loss and dealing with grief but honoring and never stopping your love for that person. “Death won’t save you from my love” is the last and most poignant lyric on the track, a sentiment most of us who’ve experienced the loss of a loved.

West Berlin’s a five piece melodic hardcore band out of Syracuse, and their self-titled track on the EP is my introduction to them. The track is as hard hitting as Bottomfed’s, but I’d  it’s a bit shorter and catchier musically. Each chord comes in with impact on this one, but there’s also some higher tones in their creating an interesting dynamic. The track is based on that initial taste of failing as an adult with no one to blame but yourself. I’ve definitely been there, so it’s a relatable record.

Overall you can’t go wrong with this split. Bottomfed delivers a heartfelt track that’s as visceral as it is emotional. West Berlin’s record is also impressive in that it feels like there’s a lot of dynamic to it in a rather short period of time. Two great tracks by bands worth checking out.

“Blackened Angel” Rating: 8.5/10

“West Berlin” Rating: 8.0/10

Featured today are two bands: Bottomfed, out from Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts and West Berlin from Syracuse, New York. Combining forces, their Bottomfed/West Berlin Split EP features two songs from each; “Blackened Angel” (Bottomfed) and “104″ (West Berlin). Though both songs are heavy and unrelenting, their styles set them apart and, all in all,  make for a great release from two talented bands.

BOTTOMFED - “BLACKENED ANGEL” | Right off the wooden bat you are sonically assulted - in a good way - by the guitar, drums and vocals that shriek and growl right alongside it. Points for Bottomfed. They immediately grab your attention and shake you like a ragdoll, pounding their music into your head. These are not bad things. It would be bad if the music was ill-conceived, but the band is able to work it’s way through the chaotic noise and make some really heavy but tuneful music supported by excellent lyrics that touch on death and loss.

It may seem bleak and dour throughout, but within the lyrics, you’ll find some pretty affecting and heartfelt lines:

My blackened angel soars high My blackened angel soars still

Effectively shining light on an event as tragic as a funeral for a love one. The song is still a manic rush from beginning to end, though, with a pretty killer passage at around the one minute mark. I said in the beginning that it was unrelenting, and it really is. It doesn’t let go until the very end, which is great to hear and would undoubtedly make for a visceral and surreal live experience.

WEST BERLIN - “104″ | Coming off the heels of “Blackened Angel,” “104″ takes a much more melodic approach to the aggressive and heavy metal assault established on record. It’s a good difference between songs that carry with them their own styles. “104,” though crushing, provides the listener with lead work that pierce through the wall of guitar to add a sense of pointed melancholy. It’s appropriate, especially when you hear lyrics like this:

And I’ll never go down 104 again To the broken glass and heartache And I’ll never go down 104 again To the unmarked graves that house salted bones

Lyrics that, unlike “Blackened Angel,” evoke a feeling of grief and despair that wishes for the hope seen in the previous song. Whether it’s regarding a feeling of utter failure (as per Metal Insider writer Nick DeSimone) or about that familiar theme of death again, the lyrics really pack a punch that hold their own with the music.

Regarding both songs, they’re well produced with the guitars sounded fantastic, a thick and resonating low end and great drumming that brings a well-needed sense of urgency to both tracks. Ultimately, both bands fulfill what a great split EP is supposed to do: provide excellent representations of their music and help build upon each other.

Check out the songs on Bandcamp from the link below:

Hey everyone!

It’s been quite some time since we’ve been active on this website but we’ll be more diligent about that from now on. If you want to stay updated on anything that happens to slip through the cracks you can follow us on the following platforms…

https://www.facebook.com/BottomfedMA/

https://twitter.com/BottomfedMusic

and our instagram, @bottomfedmusic

Now on to the main point,

WE’RE GOING ON OUR FIRST U.S. TOUR!

We’ll be teaming up with our friends Anthony (Huo) and Junior (Shook Up) who are filling in on Drums and Bass respecfully. Both of these amazing human beings are from extremely talenect CT based bands that you should definitely check out. Huo will actually be joining us on the last week of the tour! It’d be great to see some friendly faces on the road, we’ll be posting event pages as soon as they are created!

Lastly, we’ll be releasing a new single “Blackened Angel” some time within the month. This will be the first single off of our debut full length album “Chasing The Light” which will hopefully be out some time in early 2017. We also have a special surprise for Blackened Angel, more details on that soon!

As always, you can grab all of our music for FREE on our Bandcamp!

https://bottomfed.bandcamp.com/album/impatient-pile-of-bones

Hope to see you guys at a show!

    Bottemfed are a four piece experimental hardcore punk band from Massachusetts. The band consist of Ryan Meehan(Guitar/Vocals)Rob Carlson(Guitar/Vocals)Tom Cifello( Bass/Guitar )Nestor Matute (Drums). Impatient Pile Of Bones is  the first EP from them released via Super Moon Records and Wolf Head Records . It’s a quick three track EP but  it’s pretty much all you’ll need  to know you should be keeping an ear in their direction.

    Bottemfed are band that experiments with both hardcore punk styles and metal. However their sound leans slightly more metal  on these tracks more than anything. The guitar tones sort of have that thick chugging growling low end to them, the vocals alternate between clean and more throaty screamed  vocals. Pavement is a strong cut featuring a great solo as well. While the music on IPOB is hard hitting it’s also never lacking in technicality, which is pretty much what will separate them from your average hardcore band. The rifts and progression on these tracks particularly on Chalkboard Symphony and Cheap Machine is the thing that stands out most about these tracks. Chalkboard Symphony has so much passion and energy behind it, the pace switches, break downs and very sharp drumming keep that track and interesting listen throughout it’s  three minute and thirty second run time.

     Impatient Pile Of Bones is a very solid EP from a band with lots of potential to craft even better songs. So if you’re in hardcore punk or metal and you’re looking for a new band to dive into give a listen to Bottomfed.

Listen here—————->https://bottomfed.bandcamp.com/album/impatient-pile-of-bones

Rating: 8.0/10