Trustkill and hardcore. That’s got to be a joke right? Well apparently not. In fact it seems that when everyone’s former ‘favourite,’ label isn’t releasing garbage by too many bad bands to name they are unearthing the odd gem, although this is becoming scarcer and scarcer as the years pass on by. Having said that, your musical palette will determine whether End of Days, is a gem or whether it should be confined to Trustkill’s aforementioned garbage parade.

Well, even if you are merely slightly sympathetic towards hardcore and own a few Hatebreed, Madball and Terror cds in your collection then there is no reason why you shouldn’t warm to this record. Furthermore, those who remember the almighty Buried Alive and No Warning (both listed as prime influences on…that’s right their myspace) will find a preference here as this troupe recreate a moshy, anthemic racket that echoes those bands and late 90s to early 2000s outfits.

Right from the outset of ‘Even Worse,’ that Buried Alive influence is rife (in a good way) as the track is sumptuously ushered in by one of those proper dirty bass lines that made Buried Alive sound so good. Throughout the remainder there is plenty of fast paced sections and crunching chug that will get the floors opening in seconds. The pressure continues to rise through excellent numbers such as ‘The Reclamation,’ (with an immensely meaty break), ‘Relentless,’ and the rousing ‘Bound By Defiance.’

Now, I feel that I am about to enter familiar territory here when it comes to reviewing a hardcore record but just bare with me.

What impresses me is that even though these bands take the same elements that have created hundreds if not thousands of hardcore songs and still make great riffs and songs that sound individual but are openly responsive and respective of their roots then that in itself is a great achievement as sounding original is growing increasingly impossible as each year rolls by. This is precisely what Soldiers have done here, this is an honest record that bares its heart, soul and very often its teeth, nothing more and most certainly nothing less and I think that is the fundamental that has to be remembered when listening to this record and the majority of new hardcore records that now come out.

[Visit the band's website]

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