LIVING UNDER LIES remains one of the most underrated USDIY bands of the early 2000s. These songs are full of fire - dissonant, chaotic and unbelievably aggressive hardcore that his so much harder than the formulaic DBeat crust that would dominate much of the early part of the decade. They were from Portland, but three members spent the early '90s in ANIMAL FARM, COWARD, DEMISE (and countless others). They clearly dragged their Milwaukee basement roots west with them and the resulting cacophony packs even more power today than it did then. This recording (and the self titled 12" even more so) is one that makes me just listen, trying to absorb everything that's happening. Rico and Grant trade vocals like they are joining forces in separate battles with separate demons while Russ treats his drums like he wants to fucking murder them. The drum patterns are as erratic as the riffs, and there are times when it sounds like David's bass is providing the only coherent foundation while the rest of the chaos gels. LIVING UNDER LIES lands like a swarm - all of the tonnage that made the hardcore from that era stand out is here (and then some), but you aren't going to hear a track like "32nd & Hollis" anywhere else because this band did what the fuck they wanted. So I'll keep listening, jaw agape, mumbling to myself "fukk, did you hear that?!" and then I'll probably listen to the whole thing again.
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