[review]
It’s rare that a band or album hits me so hard that I feel my jaw simultaneously drop down and seize up. Born from networking of underground musicians, Hacktivist take an entirely new approach to the much berated fusion of metal and hip hop. Former members of Heart of a Coward and Sacred Mother Tongue collaborate to create a skull-crushingly heavy, complex style of metal, drawing from the past 5 years of djent and tech-death, while MCs J Hurley and Ben Marvin deliver their cleverly worded social and political lyrics through the cockney-tinged grime style of hip hop. Godzilla-sized riffs come crashing down with apocalyptic weight, creating enormous scope and resonance. The huge atmosphere and punchy drumming give the messages being delivered a foreboding sense of rising power, while the highly technical playing style is a good match for well phrased, intricate rapping verses. The self-titled EP contains 6 original songs, 1 live track and 2 remixes, which are grounded in the electro-dub foundations of grime, giving Hurley and Marvin credibility as stand-alone hip hop performers, rather than just being a gimmick to grab people’s attention. It’s one of the most outstanding things I’ve heard for a good long while. Pure, ferocious, exciting, depraved threatening, and absolutely glorious.
