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BALTA’s follow up to their Rendszerszintű Agybaszás 7” (MUS257 – 2022) is exactly what we expected. A seven-track cacophony of feral hardcore punk with little compassion for our ears. Affiliated with Budapest’s underground Hardcore Radikal movement their noise is not posture, but a cry for autonomous freedom; Anywhere and at any price. Drawing influences from noise visionaries worldwide, from PSYCHO SIN to PESTE to FIRMEZA 10, they occupy their own space amongst the current idealist, anti-commercial punk movement bands like PIÑEN or CAYIR. Their anti authoritarian message is clear, but mainly LOUD.
Mastered by Shigenori Kobayashi at Noise Room.
Our take: Mindenki Mindig Minden Ellen is the second EP from this noisy Hungarian punk band on La Vida Es Un Mus. You might remember their first EP, Rendszerszintű Agybaszás, which we named Record of the Week back in December 2022. If you love hardcore punk that is maximally noisy and chaotic, you are going to love Balta right off the bat… the tones on this record are insane. The recording is raw and blown out, with a guitar sound that’s fried into a static-y oblivion. It seems kind of obvious to compare Balta to 80s Italian hardcore given their raw and chaotic sound, but they particularly remind me of Indigesti because there’s a relatively straightforward hardcore band lurking beneath the noise, tape hiss, and chaotic delivery. The vocalist sounds like a mix of the guy from Indigesti and Pat Dubar from Uniform Choice, and when there’s enough of a lull in the chaos to get a handle on what’s going on (like when they play the catchy main riff in “Ez A Zaj”), you might even find yourself humming along for a second. But those moments are few, with most of Mindenki Mindig Minden Ellen devoted to undulating waves of chaos. I particularly love when loud guitar overdubs tumble into the mix, performing the function of your standard lead guitar break, but it’s really just more noise at a higher volume and slightly different frequency. This nine-song ripper will be a thrill ride for anyone who loves unrelenting, harsh noise.