YUMEFUDA

It's difficult to explain what exactly "Japanese Hardcore" is and how it differs from "hardcore punk." But it's different, and this YUMEFUDA demo is a quintessential example. Gangs of chorus vocals and lead yowls snarled with pure fury that almost completely masks melody. The riffs are infectious, but the maximum charge of the whole recording makes it hard to do anything but break shit. The leads here are more sparse than many of their contemporaries, allowing all encompassing raw power to take center stage. If the swarming madness of "Meet My Dream" isn't the jam that kicks you in the ass today, then you might need to reevaluate things (and "Live On Alive" might just be the track that reminds you why you're here - it's rare that anyone can drop a COMES comparison in the vocals, but here it is). For those trying to compartmentalize YUMEFUDA, they could perhaps get lumped in with bands like GESHPENST and ACCOMPLICE, though I think that might be more due to scene affiliations than actual style. From what I can gather, this demo, a screaming EP and a track on the all female Hard Core Mess Japankore Omnibus (with GAIA, SINK and others) is the extent of their output...but if the shit is this good then I will happily digest all nine tracks repeatedly.

JAPANESE HARDCORE