ANTiSEEN--Southern Hostility
TKO 2002
After having everything really come together for themselves musically on Noise For The Sake Of Noise, ANTiSEEN faced the task of keeping that momentum rolling with their next release. By this point in the game, ANTiSEEN had faced countless obstacles that would've killed practically any other band. Southern Hostility is both a culmination of built up frustration, as well as the band's grand exclamation that they would be crushing skulls with destructo rock until the day they died. This stuff really is that powerful.
While the aforementioned Noise For The Sake Of Noise album is the point ANTiSEEN's sound really took shape, Southern Hostility marks the first time that vision was honed to razor sharp perfection. The liner notes to this remastered version of the album note that this lineup of the band didn't get along together very well. While that may have been a drag socially speaking, it couldn't have been any better for the music. This energy helps fuel Southern Hostility, bringing the always present fury in ANTiSEEN's music finally alive. In a lot of ways, this is probably what the band were aiming for on their first album, Honour Among Thieves--Southern Hostility truly was a benchmark moment in ANTiSEEN history, for this fact alone.
In terms of craftsmanship, Southern Hostility further proves ANTiSEEN were unwilling to take a step backward. There is not a single moment of this album that comes off as a letdown or even tepid--this is the unrelenting assault things had been building to for years. From the opening rumble of a cauldron that introduces the appropriately titled "Death Train Comin'," this is thirty-six minutes and forty-seven seconds of abrasive, bloody, Southern fried glory. "Watch The Bastard Fry" might win the award for most furious of the batch, the collective sentiment turning that emotion into something truly organic. "Slice You Open" recalls the Misfits classic "Skulls" a bit, while "Kill The Business" remains to this day one of the band's finest moments in throwing down from a place of truth. Southern Hostility is the album ANTiSEEN were destined to make all along.
After this platter, there would indeed be no turning back for ANTiSEEN. While their earlier work also remains of great merit, in a lot of ways, Southern Hostility is really where it all began for the band. There is a reason why this album is such a fan favorite. If you have yet to partake, get a copy immediately. The first complete ANTiSEEN masterpiece.
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