Label: 316 Productions
Released: 2007
At their best, Seizure Crypt is a rehash of 80s New York hardcore, wavering between its earlier thin punk and later more metallic veins. Those high points are energetic, aggressive songs with the typical trappings of the genre: unbridled speed alternating with slow churning grooves, metallic riffs, growls, infectious anger. Both “The Deadend” and “Thankless” channel at least a little bit of Age of Quarrel-era Cro-Mags, but these are the exception. Most of Seizure Crypt’s songs are mediocre hardcore tunes that fall well short of those they are emulating. Their dual vocal approach should serve to add some depth and color, but frankly, it’s hardly noticeable. Sure, there are two voices, but they don’t work together as a sum greater than its parts. There’s just two separate singers, but nothing dynamic that results from them. To make matters worse, they throw in a bit Black Sabbath heaviness on “Herein the Problem Lies,” but the song is so flat that it’s stagnant next to the fast pace of the rest of the album rather than being a successful change-up. Inexplicably poor production courtesy of Don Fury, who’s worked with a hardcore who’s who from Agnostic Front to Youth of Today, may have hidden some strengths, but not likely enough to make this a must hear album even within the purist hardcore community. If Seizure Crypt were just a small scene local hardcore band, they might be a stand out, but not on the NYC or national stage. There’s just too much competition and Hello My Name Is Madness doesn’t offer enough to compete at that level.
Rating: 4/10