(Andy Synn shares his thoughts on one of his most anticipated albums of the year)
What’s the difference between Metal and Hardcore?
Some people, of course, see the two as entirely separate things… and refuse to have anything to do with the other one… but the truth is that Metal, Hardcore, Punk, Grind, etc, have always existed as part of a greater continuum – not a linear spectrum, by any means, but a complex, interwoven web of inputs and influences, constructions and perceptions – that doesn’t necessarily divide the genres into neatly defined little niches.
Take Alabama’s No Cure, for example, who are most definitely a Hardcore band – they even describe themselves as “the world’s most evil straight-edge band” – but who aren’t afraid of acknowledging that, in their own way, bands like Sepultura, Machine Head, and Dying Fetus have had almost as much impact and influence on their sound as the likes of Earth Crisis, Hatebreed, and The Acacia Strain.
So it’s more than fitting that their new album, set for release this Friday, has a little bit of all those bands in it, while still being defiantly its own thing.
One thing you should have noticed about all those bands name-checked above is that none of them are purely Metal or Hardcore either – some of them play Metal with a Hardcore spirit, some of them play Hardcore with a Metal edge, and so on – and none of them give a fuck about what the purists think, one way or another.
And while No Cure undoubtedly pin their armour-plated convictions to the proverbial mast with tracks like the aptly-titled “Ironclad” and the sub-minute massacre of “I Am Still Fucking Straight Edge”, it also quickly becomes clear on It Is Going to Get Dark that they have little to no interest in letting anyone else tell them what they can or should be.
The aforementioned “Ironclad” is more Cannibal Corpse than Converge, for example, while similar early stand-outs like crushingly catchy opener “When the Spasms Cease” and the drum-happy, up-tempo staccato stomp of “Slowly Turning Blue” effectively blur the lines between Death Metal and Hardcore into nothing (without falling into the common tropes of “Deathcore”… not that there’s anything wrong with that when it’s done right).
For all that the group clearly have no qualms playing up the “Metallic” side of their monstrously heavy Metallic Hardcore hybrid, however, they haven’t abandoned their roots by any means, with equally nasty numbers like the brutish, bass-driven “Oblivion Crusade” and punishing pit-anthem “Purity Spiral” retaining that same savagely stripped-down, all-killer-no-filler, approach as their earlier EPs.
At the same time, the more Death Metal-leaning approach of “Starved in Sanctuary” and “Convulsing in the Dark” – thick, meaty tremolo riffs running rampant over punchy, two-step percussion, heaving chords hanging ominously over a barrage of hammering blastbeats – also showcases a slightly more… and forgive me for using this term… “epic” approach, via the use of some shamelessly showboating melodic guitar work (fantastic final track “Everything I Love is Dead or Dying” wouldn’t feel out of place closing a Black Dahlia Murder album) and even some subtly moody synths that easily put the likes of Gatecreeper and Frozen Soul to shame.
It’s not all sunshine and rainbows of course – the boastful, self-aggrandising Bayway guest spot on “Brain Matter Displacement” is a major weak point in what is otherwise an absolutely devastating, Dying Fetus style mauler (thankfully the other special guests, especially the appearances by Tyler Short of Inclination and the one and only Vincent Bennett of The Acacia Strain, are far more effective), and I’m still not sure if “My World In Flames” actually adds much to the overall album, despite enjoying it on first listen – but the occasional mis-step is more than forgiveable considering how high the actual hit rate is here.
In the end, as dark as No Cure get here – and they’re not shy about sharing their thoughts on addiction, corruption, and death by any means – their long-awaited debut album turns out to be a major bright spot in the year, and one of my favourite albums of 2026 so far.