New Grass – Fake Drums (2015)

Thank god for the future.

Fake Drums is a furious, pummelling maelstrom of mathy hardcore that’s come howling out of Kansas City. It’s heavy, abrasive, dazzling in its complexity, ever morphing and shifting. It’s seven and a half minutes of absolutely riveting music.

And all of this was made by one person. One person! We live in an age where people can program drums that sound this good, and for that I am infinitely grateful.

Fake Drums pulls no punches, ripping through time signatures and riffs as Lucio’s vocals tear across the top. Heavily distorted guitars duel off, held together by fantastically intricate drumming and meaty, thudding basslines. It crests effortlessly on a wave of feedback straight from one track to the next, making the EP feel like a single cohesive work.

Oquendo’s guitar work is brilliant – it captures the anguish and heaviness of a band like Circle Takes The Square or Loma Prieta while staying detailed and melodic.

I am on the edge of my seat to see what New Grass does next – it really can’t come soon enough. And if you’re sitting alone in your bedroom, wishing you could make music, listen to this EP and take heart – great things are possible.