(Here’s Wil Cifer’s review of the latest album, released last week via Flatspot Records, by the L.A. hardcore band Terror.)
Yeah, I know this is a metal blog, but Terror crosses over enough to give hardcore-leaning headbangers what they are looking for. The focused intention this album (Still Suffer) hits you with is something that would be amiss to not recognize. Ten albums into their career, the band’s origins date back to the band Buried Alive from the ’90s. The caustic elements in motion here are well-balanced for all the thrash metal embraced by the guitar riffage; there are more than enough gang vocals, and the attitude of the lead vocals makes it clear these guys are hardcore.
This band is perhaps even more harcore than most of the bands claiming that title in 2026. Taking you back to the ’90s, when that scene had a vital energy that made you feel like you were a part of something bigger than music. The title track sets the tone with a more groove-driven riff. When you hear it from the safety of your home, you still know this would be a brutal pit. The songs are concise one-two punches, rarely feeling the need to venture over three minutes.
“Destruction of My Soul” shows plenty of thrash influence. Given their impact on hardcore, the most notable influence is obviously Slayer, but you can also detect some tight “Master of Puppets” like chugging. An impressive bass line leads the way into “Fear the Panic,” bringing a more ’80s Cro-Mags feel, showing their alignment in the most classic era of hardcore, which also found the genre crossing over into metal.
This might be a reason this album resonates with me so strongly, as it takes me back to when I was 13 and bands like Agnostic Front and Suicidal Tendencies made me put down my Iron Maiden albums long enough to open my mind to angrier sonic places more rooted in real-life tension rather than Dungeons and Dragons fantasy.
The faster punk undercurrent of hardcore takes over on the song “Death of Hope”. They take a stranger left turn into hip-hop with the intro of “The Beauty in the Losses.” Jay Peta from Mindforce lends his voice, and it proves to be a powerful moment. “A Deeper Struggle” finds them staying true to the genre’s formula, from a breakneck punk speed to the more crushing and deliberate riff. The same can be said for “To Hurt the Most”. The last song finds the vocalists from God’s Hate and King Nine chiming in.
Overall, while they typically play it pretty straight up by the book hardcore, they do it well and care about songwriting. The songs might fit within the hardcore rule book, but have their own identity. This is an honest hardhitting album that feels like it is true to the soul of not only a sound, but a movement these guys are still passionate about. A feeling that this is real in a world of heavily marketed and manufactured sounds is rare even in the bounds of more mainstream heavy music, so this album is something that fans of hardcore, young and old, should celebrate.
https://flatspotrecords.bandcamp.com/album/fsr92-still-suffer
https://www.facebook.com/terrorhardcore/
https://www.facebook.com/flatspotrecords