Hardcore punk maniac? DIY fan? Trendkiller? If you say all of the above, you’ll love Whip Hand! No clean singing. No tech-riffage. No fear. Whip Hand rock and jam like they don’t care what you think. Over the top? Maybe not. A little subdued? They sometimes jam a little stoner rock. Mostly the chugga-chugga riffs blend with discordant three chord transitions into a funblast of a record.
This ain’t anarchist noise. Nor is it powerpunk like The Offspring. They shout their lyrics, incite a riot, and warm the hearts of hardcore punk maniacs all over the world. So, if your idea of punk is No Doubt, you can no doubt gtfo!
I also like the prevailing theme. The name of the album suits them. Can you imagine the first few bars of track one, “Initiation Rites,” playing to the sound of a dirty warden inspecting a really primitive-looking penitentiary, then alarms sound and all hell breaks loose by the time the band picks up the pace? There’s no clean chugga-chugga here guys, like what most power-punk bands play on their music videos. This is dirty, fist-pumping, hotel room-thrashing and CBGB-destroying hardcore punk like I haven’t quite heard much of. Now that I can’t get enough of it, I’ll definitely pay closer attention to bands that sound this good. Whip Hand, unfortunately for you trendies, is not Green Day! So defo stay away if you can’t stand raw punk and hardcore hybrid bands.
No British accents here either. Don’t look for Johnny Sellout-style vocals. The shouts are authentic – no vocal effects – and there’s an occasional discordant riff. No catchy karaoke material in Dungeon Master, heathens. In fact, it’s all over before you stop getting all hyped up, so support them on Bandcamp and replay to your heart’s content. Whip Hand gets cvlt accredited, right here, right now, meatheads!
If it sounds like the band went nuts on a live take in the studio, that’s probably what happened. I don’t want guitar lessons on sweep-pickin’ arpeggios, I want to sound like Whip Hand and destroy Jimmy Page! No, I don’t need to sit down on a stool and work on my scales if I’m a big Whip Hand fanatic. Play your fucking punk heart out! If you’re a death metal/black metal maniac like I am, there’s still a chance you’ll discover punk in your flippin’ thirties, fuckers! Just go back in time and forget to brush your teeth every night like you used to after pigging out on Malted Milk Balls. Then, listen to Whip Hand.
So grab your ball and chain (not your spouse, you dud), strap it on and party at a local prison. Play this fucker loud and the barbed wires and electric fences won’t keep the prisoners from bustin’ out. Play this at a college frat party, and watch the degenerates look at you like you were supposed to bring ’em Smash Mouth. That, fortunately cvlt warriors, is not what we’re about. So, to hell with the Fender Stratocasters and the Marshall amps, let’s check out Whip Hand, and hand the trendies their fake asses!
