REVIEW: COKE BUST 'LINES IN THE SAND' (SIX WEEKS)

Woah, puns!? Don't let this get out, because it could seriously change the way people think about music, but it looks like it might be possible to make straightedge hardcore and have a sense of humour.

Featuring Magrudergrind drummer Chris, Washington DC natives Coke Bust have the same sense of aggressive, tooth-spitting urgency and the same appreciation for meaty, circle-pitting grooves. Obviously sans the grindcore, Coke Bust deliver a frantic take on late '80s mosh fodder, gleefully breaking out the gang vocals like an AD/HD Youth of Today. Originally released in 2009 as a vinyl LP, this CD edition comes with their earlier 'Fuck Bar Culture' 7”, a demo and some other assorted tracks that means there's a sudden disconcerting drop in production quality around the half-way point, but that's only a momentary distraction from the general flurry.

It may only reach the 30 minute mark thanks to having earlier material thrown on the end but as a result, the breakneck 'Lines in the Sand' is a rare fastcore/powerviolence album that actually feels like one.