Review: INTEGRITY / POWER TRIP

INTEGRITY & POWER TRIP
Split LP
Magic Bullet Records

Legendary dark hardcore monsters Integrity and Dallas crossover thrash mob Power Trip team up for a split EP that despite showcasing older material from both of the bands, still packs a mighty punch in 2016.

This split kicks off with the three Integrity tracks, the opening number We Are The End starts off with a menacing intro before the main riff kicks in with the force of a side twelve steel top capped boot and all hell breaks loose.The bands manic energy bursts forth from the speakers and frontman Dwid Hellions vocals erupt with the same fury they did when the band first started out in the late 1980s. Beneath Black Flames We Ride follows and starts off with an intro that is reminiscent of mid period Suicidal Tendencies such is its anthemic power. This mid paced track is a grooving monster with Dwid, again bearing his blackened soul over a mixture of the anthemic and the powerful before the song explodes with energy at its conclusion. Another change of pace for Integrity follows on their last track on this split, the previously unavailable Her Eyes Is Filled With Stars is a menacing ode (taken from an obscure 1989 film) complete with spoken word vocals over an atmospheric musical bed that has more than a bit in common with lauded bands such as Jesu and Grouper. Hellions spoken word passages are genuinely chilling and the music makes the whole thing even more unsettling and despite the shift to a less aggressive style, it’s is still Integrity to the core.

On the other side, Power Trip don’t disappoint with the one,two short sharp shock of Divine Apprehension and Suffer No Fool and both songs are fine slices of energetic crossover thrashing goodness.The former song sounds like a meshing of prime Overkill, Slayer and Testament with a fine line in frenetic guitar soloing and an epic breakdown section as its crescendo while the latter is a headbangers dream with a neck whipping energy coursing through the song and enough energy to make you want to stage dive off the nearest table, ending this split on a real high.  Power Trip are often referred to as a hardcore band and while there are hardcore elements in both their sound and style (witness the hardcore vocals on Suffer The Fool for proof), they are really a thrash band at heart and prove that here without doubt.

Despite the material being from a few years ago originally, it still sounds fresh and that that is testament to the quality of both Integrity and Power Trip and shows that fans can’t wait to hear brand new music from both of them.