Personal Damage: Violent Ritual cassette

Personal Damage: Violent Ritual cassette


Tags: · hardcore · hardcore punk · hcpmf · los angeles · punk
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Hardcore Punk from Los Angeles

Our take: The third EP from this LA hardcore punk band is yet another ripper. While it’s tempting to compare Personal Damage to the titans of catchy, 80s-style hardcore punk that came from their part of the world, the two bands that Personal Damage reminds me of most are from Boston: Gang Green and the Freeze. While Personal Damage’s demo was more on the Gang Green end, Violent Ritual leans more toward the Freeze’s sound on This Is Boston Not LA and Guilty Face. Like the Freeze, Personal Damage writes memorable tunes, and also like the Freeze they play almost all of them at blinding tempos. The call and response chorus in “Banned From Society” is designed to have you singing along immediately, and it succeeds. The searing, Agent Orange-inspired guitar lead is icing on the cake. The trick with this style is to keep it from sounding like pop-punk, and Personal Damage’s off-the-charts snot factor and their commitment to playing as fast and as hard as possible keep them on the right side of that line. Sadly, this isn’t streaming online anywhere, so you’ll have to take my word about how hard it rips. I wouldn’t steer you wrong, would I?