Local Music Reviews
Snuff Tape
The Devils Work
Self-Released
Street: 03.02.23
Snuff Tape = Hatebreed + Knocked Loose
Local hardcore band Snuff Tape has summoned an EP so malevolent that it is bound to seal your fate with the infernal regions of hell. The local Salt Lake City band formed in 2021, and has been able to skillfully portray grotesque imagery throughout their lyrics and tone. Together with gruesome guitar riffs, they trigger a sense of fear and rage while reverberating brutality with their distinct sound.
With four songs on The Devils Work, the EP starts with “Red Collar,” which is the perfect introduction to Alec Lange’s intense, guttural vocals. The band uses an array of techniques to demonstrate the brutal nature of their music; the fast-paced, heavily distorted guitar creates the perfect raw energy that carries into the next song: “Stretch the Nerve.”
Snuff Tape’s frequent tempo changes are most notable in this track. Kai Christensen‘s ruthless riffs are perfectly synchronized with the articulate sound of the band’s drums, which then lead to a small electronic, mixed break as the song reaches its end. As soon as you let your guard down into thinking the song has finally reached its comedown, Lange’s vocals come back in full force just to finish the song accompanied by a rapid succession of drum pounding.
In “The Devils Work,” Lange sings: “Seeing red again / This sinking feeling sinking in / No one to mourn the loss.” It is clear that the song describes what it’s like to do the Devil’s work, taking the lives of those who can’t see the shadow of death is after them and diminishing their souls one by one. Snuff Tape not only creates an auditory visualization for us, but can make one entirely feel the pure brutality of the reckoning nature of death through their heavy breakdowns caused by relentless guitar and percussion.
Towards the end of “The Devils Work,” Snuff Tape exhibits true storytelling with their description of soul-taking in the next set of lyrics: “Watching the life drain from your eyes / No mercy / No compromise / You’re just a coward / And I hope you’re afraid to die.” The nature of this song is violent, which is why Snuff Tape is the perfect fit for the hardcore genre.
Retrospectively, “Power Trip” differs from the rest in the album as it showcases more versatility than the rest. The band had shown they can use their instruments more intuitively as Lange’s vocals set the tone on the tempo of the guitars and drums, which drag slower throughout the song, until it comes to an abrupt end. “Power Trip” had to be one of the more complex songs on the album, and with more depth and versatility, this song is definitely one that will send your psyche through an endless abyss of pain and suffering.
All four songs are dissimilar from each other in a sense that they all carry different elements and notes that make it hard to pick a favorite. Although this is the band’s first EP, it certainly has broken ground into the multitude of talents each member contributes through their songs.
For those who need an introduction to the local hardcore scene, Snuff Tape is the band to surely drag you into the genre with no intentions of bringing you back. Snuff Tape finds a way to make the genre more than just music as their storytelling nature makes them stand out from the rest. Don’t be surprised when you can’t break the cycle of listening to anything but hardcore after you get a taste of their array of sound. —Litzi Estrada
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