Album of the Day: D.I.S., Becoming Wrath

Spoiler alert: D.I.S.’s Becoming Wrath won’t be on my Best of 2013 list. There were other records that shook me harder and meant more to me than that one. (Oh, also, it came out in November 2012.) But man, I can’t think of much that I listened to more often this year. Straightforward, snarling metallic d-beat, it delivers exactly as much as it promises: 9 propulsive piss-and-vinegar hardcore songs with exquisitely-timed grooves (not breakdowns, mind you. They don’t have time to cater to the karate moshers out there.) Whole damn thing’s practically powered by rocket skates.

Yeah, it’s d-beat, so variance is pretty much verboten. But Becoming Wrath doesn’t linger past the half-hour mark, so by the time “The Crushing Low” wraps up, their shtick has yet to wear out its welcome. A perfect album to keep you moving if need be. Just as effective as a red eye or tall vente café mocha fucking whatever. I threw it on a playlist right after Rotten Sound’s equally stellar Species at War EP and finally got back into a good running groove. It’s not as weighty as the stuff by bands who’ll be doused in year-end love like showers of gold, but man, it’ll stick around longer than some of them might.