“Shit out your soul/Day by day/Accepting lies they throw your way…”
The quote above is quite bleak, isn’t it? Well if you were expecting something upbeat and swinging, then ‘Rotting Civilization’ by Septic Tank is definitely not for you! However, if you’re a fan of bleak, pissed off 80’s influenced grind core, then prepare to have your face melted! Septic Tank which features members of Cathedral, Trouble, and Repulsion was originally formed in the 90’s as a way for frontman Lee Dorrian to express his love of bands such as Discharge and Siege. A handful of live shows were played during these times, but it wasn’t until 2013 when Septic Tank finally released a self titled 7′ EP, the only problem, it was only released in Japan and even then it was limited to 900 copies. From that release we got ‘The Slaughter’ an early Celtic Frost sounding track that honestly could have fit on earlier Cathedral albums.
Fast forward to 2018 and we are in a much angrier time. Whether you’re from a liberal, conservative, independent, etc everyone seems to be in a state of anger and frustration and Septic Tank is channeling all of that negativity and throwing it back at us ten fold! From tracks like “You Want Some” to “Whitewash” to my personal favorite track “Social Media Whore” (It’s hilarious how accurate the lyrics are) you get nothing but relentless brutality mixed with the ever impressive guitar wizardry of Gaz Jennings (who may very well be the most under appreciated guitarist in all of metal)! While Septic Tank isn’t reinventing the wheel by any stretch of the imagination with ‘Rotting Civilization’ they have however released a pissed off hardcore punk album that rivals anything from the 80’s and will certainly have an influence that is felt many years from now!
