No Look City - "No Look City" (Self-released, 2020)

Band: No Look City
Title: Blindness
Genre: Hardcore Punk/Metalcore
Time: 10.38 min
Release date: 4th March 2020
Vote: 89/100













“What happened to the music and the message that I love?” H20 – What happened

Can 10 minutes shake up the entire hardcore punk scene? Sure they can! Cause what matters most is quality not quantity. To be honest I am that kind of person who likes old bands and who’s always questioning new stuff because, as H20’ve said in one song, I got the impression that over time, the true spirit of punk and hardcore got lost. And it’s all related: attitude, thoughts, messages to convey, and most important thing: priorities. That’s right, cause in punk there are a few things which are very important, such as the spirit, the attitude, the way of life. And often happens not to see these fundamental elements anymore in a hardcore band. And above all, it is rare to bring out an original sound!

That’s why I must admit that when I listened to this brand new hardcore band from Rome for the first time, I was impressed. I fell in love with their sound so much that I decided to review them. Why? The answer is simple: because they got whatever it takes to be a brilliant hardcore band. They got a powerful sound, only listening to their EP, "Blindness", you can feel their energy and anger. It goes straight to your heart.

What struck me mostly was the fact that when you listen to them you can definitely feel their influences from the past, such as Madball, Sick of It All, Hatebreed and Terror. But these are their roots. They’re not a copy as it can happen nowadays. No Look City is a remarkable evolution of their ancestors’ sound.

They argued that they have many influences, from the past and the present, in particular Trail of Lies, Expire, Guilt Trip and Blistered.

Since the first seconds of their first EP, “Blindness”, I’ve been completely captured by their sound. “Blindness” is made up of five songs. The first one, “137”, is a prelude, and it is mainly dominated by a simple but well-structured guitar riff. The second song, “Conscious and Miserable”, is a blast. The sound is vigorous and energetic, the voice is raw but accurate and deep.

I personally love the lyrics of the third song, “Burning Love”, that says “SPREAD LOVE THROUGH PAIN / It helps you fight / Show that something’s still alive / Overcome fear, get involved / In the struggle for liberation” [Fuck, very nice words, men! - Flavio]. This should be the real aim of hardcore: not only good music but also a positive message that helps you to cope with everyday problems. To face life with the right attitude (as the Bad Brains said: “We got the PMA!”). The song starts more slowly but then it speeds up; it’s a mix of hardcore and metalcore. I personally found some similarities with Comeback Kid’s sound.

The fourth song, “Never True”, is a powerful hardcore song. It starts with a fast and original guitar riff and then it slows down at the end. I love the lyrics of this song as well (I love them all!); they basically are talking about people who spread hate and anger, in order to create problems, because they’re too scared to look inside their heart and see what’s wrong with them: “Preach the union but feed hate / Look at the others, never yourself”.

“No Look City”, the fifth song that recalls the band’s name, is the perfect closure of this magic EP, an union of all the elements that create an explosive compound able to make your hearts beat to the rhythm of good punk hc and to ignite the hope that in 2020 you can still listen to a very good hardcore band and find again “the reason for screaming”!

"Reality exists in human mind"

No Look City Biography:

No Look City is a hardcore band, born in Rome from an idea of the drummer, who started writing lyrics and songs in early 2019. The band was officially formed from his meeting with the guitarist, so they began to write arrangements. The singer and the bass player completed the line-up later that year, making a contribution in the song-writing. The sound recording idea was to create a rough sonority recording instruments and voice in the rehearsals room of the drummer, but in the end NLC turn to Leandro from Till Deaf Recording Studio (Caserta CBC), and in one day the demo was entirely recorded.

"Blindness" Manifesto is as follows:

In a metropolis that does not look at the outcasts, the easiest thing is to turn away the sight, avoid reality, pretend nothing, be blind. We scream for those who have no voice or who cannot shout so loudly to be heard. Music is our medium. Hardcore is not just a musical genre, not a way of dressing or a simple way of being. Hardcore is social commitment, it is breaking down inequalities, it is unity, an attitude. All members of this band are anti-racists and against all forms of discrimination.

Tracklist:

1 - 137
2 - Conscious and Miserable
3 - Burning Love
4 - Never True
5 - No Look City

Line-up:

xPeppox - vocals
Andrea - guitars
Giorgio - bass
Luigi - drums

FaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/nolookcityhc/
BandCamp: https://nolookcity.bandcamp.com/releases