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Reviews
Terrorizer
7.5/10
Even
though metalcore has intoxicated so many fledgling acts since
Canterbury’s The Break In released the ‘This Ends
With Us’ MCD in 2004, the quintet have, quite refreshingly,
eschewed any addition of harmonised riffs, melodic choruses and
beatdowns on this debut full length. Focusing instead on making
each one of ‘Unbowed’s 26 minutes a rabbit-punch to
the teeth. TBI offer up a direct dose of fury in the vein of Earth
Crisis’ masterpiece ‘Gomorrah Season Ends’,
but with more energy than a caffeine influenced guitar crunch
and old school hardcore authenticity, ‘Unbowed’’s
strength lies within it’s unrelenting bluntness, the forceful
drive of the ten tracks pummelling any desire for musical complicatiors
from the listener. that’s not to say that ‘Unbowed’
is a one dimensional work of thuggish grunting - far from it.
The Break In just know that sometimes when weaponised, simplicity
can be the deadliest of devices. (Leander Gloversmith)
Powerplay
9/10
The
straight edge scene in Canterburyhas been burning bright for many
years and whether it be in the capacity of band members, zine
editors or gig promoters, members of South East troupe The Break
In have been involved in the scene from the start. now united
in the name of agressive noise, the band unleashes their album
'Unbowed". "Coffrin Dodger" kicks life into this
feral and uncomprimising hardcore album, as if on a mission from
noise itself. nothing lets up from here till the last note of
the final track, "Legion". Proving there is life in
the metalcore beast yet. "Iron Hammers" and "Beneath
Contempt" make you want to kick out ion anger, thrash around
in excitement and generally just go nuts.Compact noise is the
name of the game as the album continues with its two to three
minute bursts of fury. "Bleed For the Leeches", "Give
Them Hell" and "We Are The Plague" all hold strong
to the 'turn up, destroy, fuck off' mentality of the band. It's
all just fist pumping, head banging hardcore noise from the off.
Packing this much anger into 28 minutes must have been no small
task. All ten tracks on the album burn with as much noise as anyone
else of their regions scene at the moment and given the opportunity
to cut the home strings a bit, i think the straight edge aggro
hardcore of The Break In has the fury to make waves across the
Uk scene. From start to finish the band rips apart the CD, and
whether it's riffs, drumbeats, vocals or anything else, these
guys shine loud and scream proud.
Metal
Hammer 7/10
Straight
edge and fuckin' proud of it.
" The Break In, at the time of recording were..." reads
the lyric sheet, alluding to the personnel ructions recently experienced
by the band. Any line-up weirdness, however , had made no apparent
difference to the focused ferocity of this Canterbury crew's attack.
The New York hardcore scene is an obvious reference point for
these guys but the ire and fire they display in such toxic quantities
on this follow-up to 'The Ends With Is' is British through and
through. Thankfully, the desire to go all tough-guy on us is reined
in and what you get is a thorough and violent pummelling delivered
at speed., kind of like being hit by a runaway juggernaut. And
where most bands' lyrics labour under the usual themes of pride,
identity and loyalty to the scene, the requisite us-against-the-world
fury on offer is refreshingly articulate. (Essi Berelian)
Kerrang
KKKK
Clean-living
Canterbury folk unleash hardcore hell.
At its worst, the hardcore scene has a tendency to be a bit humourless,
so given the added bonus of ludly proclaimed straight edge lifestyles,
The Break In promise to be uniquely laugh free and twitchy-eyed.
It comes as a great relief, then, that ‘Unbowed’ is
largely free of moralising chuff and sounds very mearly brutal
and precise as the much missed Earth Crisis did on their classic
‘Gomorrah’s Season Ends’ album. Foul, scything
metal riffs, throat-bursting screams and countless punishing beatdowns:
if this is what they sound like after a glass of water and a quick
sprint round the block, imagine how scary they’d be after
a few pints...
For Fans Of: Earth Crisis, Hatebreed.
Mass
Movement / Subba Cultura
To
be honest with you people out there you can't really go wrong
with any disc that comes from In At The Deep End Records and if
you like hardcore music then the Canterbury scene have bred some
belters (xCANAANx and November Coming Fire for awesome examples)
and here, ladies and gentlemen is the next superb offering from
one of the UKHC scenes heavyweights. I have heard a few tracks
by these before from previous releases such as No Fate But What
We Make 7" on Burial Records and the MCD on Dead And Gone
entitled This Ends With Us and have enjoyed them but never took
that much notice until now. This sees The Break In mature and
hone their sound to a head turning masterpiece that grabbed my
attention from the opener Coffin Dodger to the intrumental closings
of Legion. This is basically a no frills brand of hardcore that
requires no gimmicks or flashy musical parts to help sell it (no
offence but by no flashy musical parts I mean no widdly metal
guitar sections that some hardcore bands feel they have to splatter
their tunes with to sell copies). This to me sounded like a blend
of Terror, Donnybrook to compare to the straight ahead feel of
them and surely when you listen to tracks Coffin Dodger, Beneath
Contempt, Give Them Hell and Leviathan for perfect examples (but
all the tacks are as good as one another) you can invision nothing
but a brutal and blood filled mosh going off at every show these
guys play with a chanting crowd joining in with every word of
these songs as they belt out. It's raw, basic and straight forward
hardcore with gutural and gruff barking vocals over the top that
every hardcore boy or girl should be listening to.
Up
Magazine (Holland)
Aardschok
Magazine (Holland)
Die
Shellsuit Die Zine 5/5
I
associate Strait Edge Hardcore with a form of backward rebellion.
Where as most kids would rebel by drinking, smoking, taking drugs
and having underage/casual sex, this is something that is cast
out by SxE 'doctrine'. Abstinence from all 4 of the previous,
often combined with veganism and/or Christianity, make it the
sort of peer group that your parents, should they know, would
wholeheartedly encourage you to embrace. It's no surprise then
that this album contains a commentary on modern society and moral
values. The Break In are a block of pure steel, formed from the
foundry that is the Canterbury Hardcore Scene, starting with a
more basic sound and progressing through their previous releases
(“No Fate But What We Make” 7 inch/Burial Records,
”This Ends With Us” MCD/Dead and Gone Records) they
have undoubtedly worked their backsides off, in an uncompromised
effort to create what is 26 minutes of pure aggression. Spearheaded
by “Coffin Dodger”, a brutal high speed assault that
questions the obsession with prolonging life in old age (observing
that many who live in retirement homes and their own are isolated
from society, with the abode they reside in seeming like a dumping
ground or prison), the charge is reprised through “Iron
Hammers” and “Beneath Contempt”, two songs championing
independence and tenacity. The message carries on through “Bleed
for Leeches” which slows the charge down to a march. Instead
of coming at you like a psychotic Viking it becomes a well-oiled
machine, ready to chew you up and spit you out, with its pummeling
unrepentant assault. This is repeated in much the same way through
the follow-up track “Give Them Hell”. If the first
four tracks are the opening exchange and the main battle then
“The Wretched”, an attack on the use of our soldiers
in modern conflict, and “Against Leviathan”, which
is arguably about rediscovering yourself, are the pursuit of a
broken army leading into a full scale invasion. I've only covered
the first half of this album, but in both is lyrical and instrumental
accomplishment I find plenty of reason to recommend it. Both it's
social and political leanings, whilst being critical, have an
undoubtedly positive outlook screaming 'you can do it if you try',
being backed by skull crunching, spine shattering riffs that make
you feel like a child with a whole pile of gifts. It's a must
have.
Montagpress
The more you listen to the harder it is to be moved, especially
when everything that once moved you sounds uncannily like everything
else. When it comes to music, too much education is a terrible
thing. However for the rule there is always an exception... The
Break In, or ThexBreakxIn if your memory is long enough, delivered
a serious snap-kick to the stomach with their debut MCD (we won't
count the 7" - we're not that pretentious) ‘This Ends
With Us'. The boat rocked a little with frontman xDugganx buggering
off to join a screamy gothic metalcore outfit with one of his
xCANAANx buddies and both bands signing to In At The Deep End.
So at least we can probably assume they're all friends.It's not
a massive departure but ‘Unbowed' takes a few side-steps
away from the tough-guy mosh of previous albums, strips it down
from the unflinching chest-thumping of their Hatebreed-esque beginnings
and layers it with metallic death even going so far as to conjure
up with their artwork the stomach-churning nihilism of metallic
hardcore pioneers like Intregrity and Ringworm, whilst packing
the thoughtful moralising of Earth Crisis and some good old fashioned
gang vocals into one massive late-90s haymaker.The Break In have
always been vicious, they've always been pummelling and they've
always been true - to claim that ‘Unbowed' is something
truly revolutionary for them is probably hyperbole. It's exactly
what The Break In should be only a hell of a lot faster and a
lot dirtier; if ‘This Ends With Us' cut through the crap
to expose the beating heart of UK hardcore then ‘Unbowed'
rips it from the body and holds it aloft. 5/5
Metalrage
(Holland)
In South-East England there appears to be a formidable and influential
straight-edge hardcore scene, according to the biography of this
band. Now personally I think straight edge is utter nonsense,
but it doesn’t mean that the music sucks as well. On the
contrary, this band is one of the better hardcore bands I’ve
heard in a while. Hardcore has never been a real original genre
in my opinion. So the trick for me is to find something in those
bands that makes them stand out, and this one certainly does.
They’ve found a way to combine the old-skool hardcore formula
with the newer stuff you hear today, without the exaggerated clichés.
The music consists as I said of old and new hardcore, which results
in lots of nice bassdrum salvo’s, beatdown riffs and anti-society
lyrics. The recording quality is very comfortable to listen to
which makes this an even better album for me. Another plus is
the vocals, not too punk like, and certainly not too metal like.
He has exactly captured that protest sounding vocal touch to his
lyrics, which suits this music perfectly. He does remind me of
a singer in a different hardcore band I’ve heard, but I
don’t seem to able to recall which one it was. Perhaps turning
straight edge isn’t such a bad idea at all… I can’t
really find anything bad to say about this ten-track album (with
the last track being instrumental), which means to me that they
did a splendid job in creating this record. It’s probably
gonna get a lot of spins in my cd-player I suspect.
Last
Hours
It
doesn't seem like that long ago that This Ends With Us came out
on Dead and Gone, but it was almost a year ago now, and everything
seems to have changed since then, with Duggan (the old vocalist)
leaving the band to be replaced by Dan Burrows who moved from
guitar duties, who was replaced by Frye, who was the bass player.
The long and the short of it is that pretty much everything in
The Break In world has changed in the past few months and its
reflected on the album. Previous songs (on the D&G MCD and
Burial 7”) were short mosh hungry affairs with crunchy guitars
and Duggan's passionate, slightly high pitched, vocal style. Unsurprisingly
the vocals sound totally different now, they're slightly less
desperate, with less scream and more growl; the lyrics have changed
too, missives about personal experience or feelings have been
replaced with slightly more abstract lyrics. The music too is
slightly less mosh heavy, taking on a slightly more straightforward
feel. Its strange, it doesn't really feel anything like “The
Break In” that's on the previous two recordings. All of
that aside the record is still a pretty amazing hardcore album,
with awesome artwork too, and I hope the band manage to regain
the momentum they had eighteen months ago!
Disconnect,
Disconnect
Hailing
from Canterbury, The Break In play straight edge hardcore with
a metal touch. Their new release ‘Unbowed’ is not
only packed with fast in your face heavy hardcore, two step, breakdowns
and enraged vocals, but also offers diversity in the face of a
solo and an instrumental.
This, their first release on In At The Deep End records, shows
a solid performance, capable of following the footsteps of previous
Canterbury heavyweights xCANAANx and November Coming Fire. Lyrics
such as ‘the kids that came from nothing are still giving
everything’ make this a true hardcore record, shouting about
the everyday fight and the importance of standing up for yourself.
Communion
A couple of years ago I considered The Break In to be an overrated
straight-edge band, who got more attention than they deserved
simply because they were from Canterbury. Things have improved
somewhat.With some great, distinctly unnerving, artwork and a
solid-yet-raw production courtesy of CCR Studios in Belgium, The
Break In have laid some admirable foundations for their pissed-off,
modern hardcore. There are no metallic frills here, just straight-forward
pummelling complemented by some vicious drumming, no-nonsense
riffs and some of the most angry vocals you have heard in a long-time.Comparisons
lacking in much thought could be drawn to such bands as Donnybrook,
Terror and American Nightmare amongst others at points, and to
the uninitiated this could sound somewhat samey. But at just over
20 minutes, and with a closing instrumental to top things off,
there is no chance of this album every becoming boring.Along with
Raise The Dead, Taking Names, the forthcoming full-length from
November Coming Fire and a bunch of others, this album is setting
2006 up to be a very good year for British hardcore. 8/10
AsIce
Apparently the speed with which The Break In was storming through
finally became too much for them, because the debut album of the
guys from Canterbury wasn’t finished until recently, a year
after they originally planned it to be released. This has to do
with line up changes and a label switch. But like the title already
says, The Break In did not bow for this hardship but only worked
harder to achieve their goals. Their MCD “This Ends With
Us” reminded me of Throwdown very much, but this time it’s
Terror and Blacklisted that swirl around in my head while listening
to “Unbowed”. Only then imagine a singer with a very
raw, almost barking voice and some more melodic guitar parts.
Of course this doesn’t go for the instrumental closing track
“Legion”, which you wouldn’t expect from a hardcore
band actually. The groove, the power and the rough straight edge
lyrics all complement each other fluently and combine into a very
nice release. It’s pretty different from what I expected
based on their debut, but I must say I quite like it. So everyone
who likes some good heavy stuff with melody can check out this
English band.
Europunk
Sounding like a beast brought forth from the bowels of hell Canterbury’s
xThe Break Inx will blow your mind. This is feral, brutal and
aggressive (but not clichéd) straight edge hardcore at
its best. If the book of Revelation were enacted opening track
‘Coffin Dodger’ would break the seals for they sound
like Death and Hades (Rev 7:8, 13-15) ‘They were given the
power…to kill men with sword and famine and plague…the
sun turned black, the full moon turned like blood, [and] the stars
of the sky dropped to earth’. Such is the awesome power
and impact of xThe Break Inx.
This record is full of vitriol and malice, a call to arms for
the downtrodden: ‘Back from the dead my vengeance born again…Give
them hell...Rebuild yourself and refuse to be broken…’
Every song a winner; truth, pride, integrity all shine through.Musically
heavy, vocally guttural, and lyrically pure genius; ‘Unbowed’
is an immense full length debut.A stand out track is difficult
to choose, because they are all that good! ‘Leviathan’
though is a personal favourite. It is unbelievably catchy: ‘this
is exorcism; this is resurrection, against the world, against
Leviathan’ a call to arms if ever I heard one, and almost
as good as xThe Break Inx’s straight edge anthem ‘Beneath
Contempt’.
Also ‘Give Them Hell’, ‘We Are The Plague’
and the instrumental outro ‘Legion’ have all embedded
themselves firmly into my memory and reappear at the most apt
times. With these songs xThe Break Inx have shown their straight
edge pride, and created a masterpiece along the way. They are
sounding the seven trumpets, with music of passion, of anger,
and of purpose. For they ‘…are vengeance born on locust
wings…[who’ve] come to scour the sins of man…’
and ‘not while the ink still stains these fists’ will
they relent.
Pick up this record, go to a show and fill your heart with honour.
These boys are the revolution.
.44
Caliber Zine
Unless you're a cathedral enthusiast, the sleepy town of Canterbury
in Kent must be a pretty lame place to live, especially if you're
young, angry and hooked on the straight-edge hardcore scene pioneered
by bands like Minor Threat in the States. Or so you'd think. As
it happens, Canterbury has quickly established itself as the centre
of the UK hardcore explosion, throwing forth such homegrown luminaries
as xCANAANx and November Coming Fire to mass critical acclaim.
And after a couple of promising titbits including the excellent
'No Fate But What We Make' 7", The Break In have just added
themselves to the list of Canterbury boys done good. 'Unbowed'
is a strong, genre-defining record that doesn't so much holds
its own with releases by better-funded US bands as blow them right
out of the water, their take on the fundamental element of aggression
proving much rawer (and subsequently much more genuine) than the
over-produced, underwhelming output of scene darlings like Most
Precious Blood, Norma Jean and Bleeding Through. In fact, The
Break In are the perfect antidote to the current crop of shamelessly
superficial bands watering down hardcore to enhance its commercial
potential, and better still, they take less than half an hour
to confirm this fact. At just ten tracks and twenty six minutes
long, 'Unbowed' is over and done with in the time it takes most
bands to tune up, but such brevity denotes a lack of bluster rather
than a lack of ideas. Every track is short, sharp and to the point,
the pick of the bunch being opener 'Coffin Dodger', a slab of
fury so intense it all but sucks the fillings from your teeth.
'Give Them Hell' is also immense, and I defy anybody not to shit
their pants as 'The Wretched' makes its considerable presence
felt. An exhausting experience both live and on disc, this lot
are fucking special.
Blood
To Shed Zine
If
it weren’t for the unmistakeably British vocals, you’d
be fooled into thinking that THE xBREAKx IN were from the American
east coast scene. After losing their original vocalist Duggan
to LOVE THAT KILLS, TxBxI needed to step up with this first release
on In At The Deep End.
With
Nate (ex on thin ice) on vox duties, they don’t just step
up. They step up and raise the bar a million miles above their
contemporaries. On Unbowed, stand out tracks there are not, as
the whole album hits you like a fucking steamroller and leaves
you salivating for more.
Raw
Nerve
Striking (if not a little cluttered) artwork adorns this CD from
The Break In, who I've seen quite a few times and only really
liked once, but this recording is a different story in my eyes.
Not totally convinced by the tone and style of the vocals, but
musically is pretty much bang on for those into their straight
up hardcore thrashings and it makes sense to see that this UK
5 piece had this CD recorded over in Belgium, as it has totally
captured the correct atmosphere and dynamics needed to make it
feel really alive. The gang vocals work really well also, and
the playing is tighter than when I've seen them. 'Beneath contempt'
sees them throw in some quite unexpected, welcome and quality
riffs that show good thought in what they are doing. Still can't
get into the vocal snarls though I'm afraid. Just not to my taste.
They may be to yours, so check it out as at least musically (for
me) this kicks it!
Blastwave
The Break In Aren’t doing anything new. They’re not
following trends either. They’re a Hardcore band, but they
don’t have stupid haircuts or follow fashion. Where am I
going with this review, I hear you ask. Well, The Break In are
a straight forward, no thrills, no bullshit Hardcore band. They’re
the musical equivalent to a supermarkets own brand – no
bullshit packaging, just a simple good quality product. That’s
right kids, bands like this still exist. Don’t believe me?
Give ‘Unbowed’ a listen. ‘Coffin Dodger’
makes the perfect opening track. The riffs are simplistic and
abrasive, the vocals are harsh but still very much understandable
and the structure of the song is vintage Hardcore. The music is
flowing throughout, and The Break In don’t really experiment
with their sound at all, so there aren’t any songs that
particularly stand out. That said, I did just praise them for
being straight forward Hardcore. If you were to listen to the
tracks on their own, ‘The Wretched’ is the possibly
best track on the album; they throw in a solo and some awesome
Hardcore chugging to mosh around in your bedroom too. I suspect
a lot of these songs were written for the live environment as
they’re so relentlessly fast, filled with shouty sing-a-long
parts and plentiful heavy Hardcore moments. ‘Unbowed’
is over with pretty quickly, lasting around 26 minutes. It’s
short, sharp and to the point, a lot like this review, which incidentally
is now over. MOSH!
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