By Blackened

Released Jan. 20, 2009

Tracklist

1. Tirade
2. Let Them Drink Venom
3. This Burden Off My Back
4. Unfinished Business (Live My Life)
5. The Great Sorrow
6. If I Could Say It All Over Again
7. Unscathed
8. Kill The Weak
9. Enough Already

EvilNeedles.com

For fans of: Hatebreed, Terror, Madball, Down, Hell Yeah! More powerful than the bands from which its members sprung, Blackened could be the metalcore album to kick your ass and melt your face. There's nothing feminine about it, but I know you gals are going to love the thick, chunky chops and bulky riffs. One problem I've always had with bands like Hatebreed and Madball is that they're too compressed and too over produced. Blackened has left the edges raw, making This Means War more abrasive, interesting, and more original than other albums in this genre. I have no problem recommending this to anyone who is into real hardcore.

New Haven Advocate

Four seasoned vets of regional hardcore (current and former members of The Distance, Hatebreed and Fastbreak) deliver eighteen-and-a-half minutes of seasoned-sounding hardcore tight, visceral and full of enough tempo changes to hold kids' attention in circle pits anywhere with no part hanging in the air for too long. Blackened isn't breaking new ground with the form but they have that form in a chokehold - the old-school hardcore riffs have the right amount of swing, the thrashy metal bits jackhammer appropriately, he sounds really really mad. While the degree of melodic imagination in the riffs isn't at the same level as the band's technical skill, it is skillful and inspired in its angry attack.

WayTooLoud.com

This is what happens when former members of Hatebreed, The Distance and Fastbreak collaborate into one band and combine elements of hardcore with metal to create their own aggressive sound that’s fast, hard and unforgiving. Fans of true hardcore are in for a very nice treat as Blackened breaks into this scene with a debut album most bands can only try to create. “This Means War” erupts right into some blast beats in between really slowed hardcore, creating a deep contrast that’s almost not supposed to work, but does. Plus the way they execute each transition with precision timing and force, you’d only expect from some well-seasoned musicians. Which is exactly what we got in this band when you take a look at each of the members previous band history. Only nine tracks make up this album, all in which give you a variation of blast beats, D-beats, heavy chugging hardcore, and dark metal breakdowns. Their passion for merging the intensity of hardcore with brutal metal chords pours right out of the speakers as there’s basically no time to breath throughout the entire album. I’ve never actually used the term “hard-hitting” before to describe any album, but “This Means War” could possibly define that term. 4/5

Alternative Press

Who? Connecticut-based hardcore supergroup featuring Hatebreed bassist Chris Beattie, ex-Hatebreed drummer Dave Russo and ex-Fastbreak guitarist Chris Legg, fronted by vocalist Jay Reason of The Distance. Sounds like? Hardcore. Oh, wait, excuse us: Hahd-kowa. How is it? It is awesome to hear Jay Reason shredding his throat again, as The Distance took a big turn for the pop-rock shitpile on their last record. This music's what you'd expect it to be, but in this album's case, that's definitely not a bad thing. Rocks like? Hatebreed, Earth Crisis, Terror

PunkNews.org

From the ashes of the youth crew-influenced Fastbreak and sharing both current and ex-members of the Distance and Hatebreed, Blackened could have sounded like a variety of different things. Every member of the band is a veteran of hardcore, having connections to several eclectic hardcore bands throughout the New England area. They could have easily succumbed to sounding like any of the previous bands they served time in. Yet, they have a much heavier disposition than Fastbreak, are more unrelenting than the Distance and lack the repetitiousness of Hatebreed. Blackened is sort of like a blend of metal with the sound of New York hardcore. Not wholly original, but with a band having such a diverse background, it comes as quite a surprise. Not at all being a fan of Hatebreed, I was definitely weary about how much I would like this. So has it, several members have been peppered throughout the seasoned history of the hardcore juggernaut of a band. Thankfully, Blackened has a deeper, more inspired sound that resonates with you within the first minute of the album. They don’t really have the same mentality of a band of Hatebreed’s pedigree. Blackened comes off more humble and a lot angrier. Needless to say, they won’t be coming out with a coffee table book any time in the near future. The album wastes no time building up suspense or warming you up with an intro. “Tirade” opens, seemingly, right in the middle of the vocalist howling a furious diatribe backed by heavy guitars and a thundering rhythm section. It starts off quickly but slows down a bit to let the listener catch up. Their metal influence is showcased in songs such as “Let Them Drink Venom” and “Unfinished Business,” with the former being one of the highlights of the album. They show their `80s hardcore influence the most in the seventh track, “Unscathed,” with its simplistic intro having just a simple drum beat leading into a deep bass line. The song is probably my favorite on the album and it should please anyone with an affinity to earlier hardcore, complete with lyrics about being “the last man standing.” The album does suffer, however, from overproduction. I find the vocal effects, like the ones found on “The Great Sorrow,” unnecessary. They wouldn’t be out of place on a nü-metal album that’d be for sale at your local Hot Topic. It is a bit distracting as well, since they seem so out of place and seemingly pointless. Though the nine-song album isn’t extremely short time-wise (for a hardcore album), some of the songs could use some trimming. Overall, however, the songs are delivered with perfect precision and brimming intensity, no doubt because of all the experience driving the band. Blackened’s debut is a welcome one and makes a great addition to Connecticut’s excellent and constantly burgeoning hardcore scene.

FlexYourHead.net

Having paid their dues in such bands as Hatebreed, Fastbreak and The Distance, Conneticut now brings us Blackened. But don’t be fooled by the above bands because Blackened have taken it to the next level. They have brought back a NYHC sound from the mid to late 90’s. 9 tracks of hardcore the way I love it. It’s hard and heavy and makes me want to break stuff in my house.

Define The Meaning

Even though this band has been promoted as featuring current members of the Distance, and Hatebreed, Blackened stands a lone creating an album with a solid start to finish. "This Means War" is heavy as fuck built with suspense through each track. Hopefully Blackened will continue with this project even though they have their other current projects. I can definitely see them being the next big hardcore act to break out. Check out tracks "If I Could Say It All Over Again" & "Tirade".

HardTimes.ca

Significant Findings: In Connecticut hardcore as in life, the more things change, the more they stay the same. From the robust late-80’s Oi! band Forced Reality came the unrelenting assault of 90’s CTHC, which changed both the metal and hardcore scenes as we knew them, forever. Blackened is a brand-new band that represents east coast hardcore with a generous old-school feel, and whose arrival on the hardcore scene at the tail end of 2008 symbolizes the Connecticut scene having come full circle after more than 15 years of steady expansion outside its intended confines. The heart, soul, and roots of the Metallica of our generation, Hatebreed, glisten without compromise on “This Means War,” Blackened’s debut full-length for Think Fast! Records. Founding member and current bassist Chris Beattie, and original Hatebreed drummer Dave Russo, who performed on the band’s demos and legendary “Under The Knife” EP, serve as the rumbling, primitive underbelly for the high-pitched screams of current The Distance frontman and longtime ambassador of Connecticut hardcore, Jay Reason, and seasoned guitarist Chris Legg of Fastbreak, one of the earliest of the 90’s east coast bands to revive the 80’s youth crew and post-hardcore styles that would come to flood the hardcore scene a mere few years later. Why Blackened’s debut works so well is that while its members are clear veterans, many of whom have moved on to more certain and steady positions both in the music industry and outside of it, they revisit an angrier style of hardcore that they all grew up on, in turn mustering just as much fire as a young Bridge 9 band would likely bring to the table. With Beattie continuing to go wherever in the world the Hatebreed name leads him (Koch Records, as of just recently), and Jay Reason continuing to forward his progressive interests with melodic rock band The Distance, you’d think these guys were drained or needed a break; no such thing by the sound of it. “This Means War” races through nine songs that are as much pure NYHC in approach as anything you’ve heard this year. Possible Diagnosis: Imagine if Kevin Baker of Hope Conspiracy and Piecemeal fame fronted “Look My Way”-era Madball, with just a bit more unhinged madness, and you have a decent starting point for what Blackened sounds like. The album’s airtight production by one of the most coveted producers in metal and hardcore, Zeuss, gives the album all the punch it needs to make as bold a statement as it will upon release onto the earth in January. As for an interesting CTHC fact, Blackened frontman Jay Reason has been Jamey Jasta’s right-hand man and the manager of Stillborn Records for over ten years already; one of the earliest releases on the label was Pushbutton Warfare’s “Wash Away The Weak” 7”, a band which gave members to Hatebreed and 100 Demons upon its dissolution, but also whose early lineup featured now super-producer Zeuss. So don’t think for one second that Blackened are merely some random Hatebreed side-project band.