Music
The best kept secret in music
Press
From the moment Eulogy posted a demo recording of a song from THE WARRIORS, I knew this band was going to be one of Eulogy's best signings in a long time. War is Hell is deeply rooted in a hardcore sound that was made prevalent some 10 years ago, taking the massive metallic crunch of STRIFE, and slapping it around with the groove-tinged beats of INSIDE OUT, DOWNSET, and even RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE. The dual guitarists of THE WARRIORS dominate on this release, playing simple, but gloriously thick chords, that chug after chug, emit a white-hot display of intensity. Although THE WARRIORS suffer somewhat in the area of a strong lead vocalist, "Marshall L." (last name not noted in the booklet) has a shouting style that's rare these days, and far more gutsy sounding than his "screaming incoherently" contemporaries. Anyone can collapse their mouth around a mic, but Marshall uses the mic more like a megaphone as he dictates his marching orders. Lyrically, THE WARRIORS invoke the classic nature of California's rich hardcore history, scolding political and social enemies alike. Stinging sing-alongs only assist THE WARRIORS in getting their vivid points across. NO MOTIV's Roger Camero produced War is Hell and he definitely gets to the core of THE WARRIORS style - a no-frills package that rattles to the bone with each and every stompin' kick of the bass drum. Camero hasn't earned much attention as a producer yet, but I hope that this release puts his talents on the map. Bottom line: this disc rules! - Jordan Baker
Evolution truly is a rapid process. Just look at the hardcore/metalcore scene these days and even some of its most recent iterations have nearly been forgotten in favor of fashionably Swedish-styled riffing and liberal amounts of pilfered Bay Area thrash. The Warriors (who hopefully took their name from the classic 1979 film) are the proverbial historians here to change that, for the fury they bring forth is one that is heavily entrenched in a sound that is now all but forgotten.
Capturing the raw and crushing weight of groups like Earth Crisis, Inside Out and others, The Warriors dutifully pay homage to the early to mid 90's sound. Massive riffing matches up with a titan-like rhythm section to create some fiercely inspired aggression that favors repetition over sonic progression. In turn, the band are able to play out their primal instincts with vicious results, clobbering and battering the listener with a bevy of blunt objects while shunning most opportunities to engage in any needless surgical dissections. An enraged over the top vocal performance that more often than not amounts to gratingly treble-heavy screams and gang vocal back-up's is thus led to lead the way; and does so much like a maniacal general caught up in the heat of some barbaric conflict.
While such a description may lead one to believe that this is steakhead music with no frills, the ample guitar fills and malevolent little eccentricities present do provide an air of intelligence that belies the primal onslaught. Still, innovation and uniqueness are not exactly The Warriors strong points. They put up a good fight and leave many a blood-soaked battlefield but their tactics lack the genius to put them into the history books. With some more strategizing and a better fleshing out of their ever present dark undercurrents, the group could easily establish themselves as a powerful force. But for now they seem to be more caught up in hand to hand infantry combat, lacking the overall scope to strike a decisive victory.
- ThePRP.com
I never in my life would have expected to hear modern hardcore mixed with a Rage Against the Machine influence. But that is exactly what The Warriors bring to the plate with their debut album. The band is heavy with a lot of chugging, but they have a sense of quirkiness and some of the more groove oriented riffs are totally taken straight from Rage Against the Machines debut album. Is it a bad combination? Not on your fucking life. It makes for one of the most interesting hardcore albums in quite sometime.
The production holds this album back just a little bit. The guitar tone is heavy, and everything is mixed rather evenly musically, but the vocals are a little bit out front and have an almost too trebly sound to them. The vocals themselves sound good. The singer has a harsh on the verge of falling apart type of scream and it really works with the music. He also dabbles in a lot of spoken passages, which is where a lot of the RATM influence shows the most.
Some of the more “elite” hardcore types out there might have a problem with the RATM influence, but even without the influence the band plays amazing heavy hardcore with inventive riffs and original breakdowns. Add in the groovy riffs and varied vocals and you have a real winner on your hands. - Unboundzine.com
Discography
Still working on that hot first release.
Photos
Feeling a bit camera shy
Bio
Taking cues from the bands that inspired them, including 108, Inside Out and others, THE WARRIORS have crafted their own brand of mid-tempo, post-hardcore that resists classification. I cant really say there is a band out there doing what they do, writes Michael Phillips from scenepointblank.com, although elements of the bands sound have drawn comparisons to Sick of it All, Rage Against the Machine and Madball.
Lyrically, the band approaches themes that extend further than scene drama and ex-girlfriends. The band believes that its important to consider events that are occurring outside the sphere of the hardcore scene. Guitarist Danny Phillips comments that, its essential, especially now, to recognize that there is a world outside the scene. And although we wouldnt necessarily consider ourselves an overtly political band, there is certainly an attempt lyrically to set our music to a theme of real world social and political issues in this realm of hardcore/punk that has somehow lost many of its founding characteristicsincluding its genuine sense of outrage. Brutal but compassionate, basic but constantly experimenting in how they can expand within that sound, the group is adamant on forging ahead while staying hardcore. We in no way consider ourselves pioneers but we feel we are taking steps in the right direction. Hardcore as a genre needs to be explored, turned upside down and approached from every angle.
The band formed in Tehachapi, a small town in Southern California, while the members were still in high school. Danny observes that the remoteness of their hometown may have been instrumental to the bands formation and success: There wasnt the distraction of having anything better to do. After high school the members almost parted ways, but due to strong opposition to the breakup and the feeling that, we still had a lot to say and a lot of creative energy to continue with new material, the members decided to stick with it. They put off college plans and soon after signed to Eulogy Recordings. Beyond the Noise will be their second release on the label.
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