Punch – They Don’t Have to Believe

Three years have passed since grindcore outfit Punch put out their excellent EP How Nothing Lasts. That EP saw the band blending their ferocious mix of grindcore and hardcore/powerviolence, with vocalist Meghan O’Neil at her best; the seven songs were great from start to finish.

Luckily, their follow-up album They Don’t Have to Believe continues in the same vein. Production wise, it is just as strong and the length of twenty minutes is perfect. It lacks some of the hardcore singalong vibe of their previous EP but apart from that, the sonic barrage is pretty flawless. Just when your head starts to spin from all the violence, they throw in the longest track ‘Denial’ (2:33) which has a nice slow ninety second intro so it is possible to relax a bit. They rage on before and after that though, without faltering. Although the five second title track is a bit gimmicky.

Punch could be a band for you to get into grindcore because they don’t purely do grind. Therefore this record could appeal to a lot more people. Together with How Nothing Lasts, this could be your perfect soundtrack for half an hour of breaking things, violently. You can stream the entire record here.

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