Child - Shitegeist - Metal Epidemic

Child – Shitegeist
Release Date: 29th March 2024
Label: Suicide Records
Bandcamp
Genre: Grindcore, Crust-Punk, Death Metal.
FFO: Disfear, Wolfbrigade, Venomous Concept, Birdflesh.
Review By: Mark Young

Child, unleash their second album, Shitegeist, and it is a short, sharp blast of the finest mix of grind/punk/death metal you’ll probably hear this year.

Feedback, pounding drums and Shitegeist explodes in a two-minute blast of fury, Jocke Lindström vocals tearing between a death metal growl and an anguished howl. It’s quick, vital and sets the tone for the rest of the album as they drop 11 songs in twenty-four minutes with an intensity that doesn’t drop below 9. Mass Crowning moves into death / grind territory, blast beats fighting with trem picked guitar. Those punk overtones are there again, soon supplanted by a mental solo. This is fantastic stuff, bridging between those disparate genres with a criminal ease. It’s not a one-off either, Tin Foil Party People blowing in like it is in a hurry to kick your teeth in and leave. It’s a punishing 1-2-3 and one of the strongest openings I’ve heard in ages. Track length is not important here, as they do so much in such a short time.

Time Island shows they can bring the riffs too, this is just cracking stuff, once again mixing all the ingredients to perfection. I love it when something comes in like this, no prior knowledge of the band or its members, and it is such a stormer. I Will Refuse (with David Sandström) is a cover of the Pailhead song. I’ve never heard it before, and it surprises with its cod-Smiths strum pattern (think Bigmouth Strikes Again) until the heavy comes rolling in. This is in a more traditional hardcore fashion, and I’ll be honest it doesn’t hit as well as the others, possibly because it sits within one sphere of music and possibly because it’s not an original. Not a bad track, just not as good as the first three. Golden Chasms corrects the course with the blast beats and furious guitar back to destroy. Creative Inventions of Killing

Slows down a little, with more of a melodic arrangement showing that it’s not all blast, blast, blast, and it’s a welcome one too. Shame, Smite, Subside opts for a rolling riff that runs between those super aggressive drums again. Again, they do so much within a short time with riffs that other bands would extend into a full song. Glowing Kids starts the end run with a decent punky number before Welfare Collapse (with Fredrik Wallenberg) ups the ante with one minute 26 seconds of pissed anger before Swiper comes in with a discordant riff, repeated stabs into a repeating arrangement. Controlled, measured and a great end to a storming album.