Selfmindead

Item: Selfmindead
Author: Jonathon Smith

(1997)

Reviewed by Jonathon Smith

Discogs Bandcamp Apple Music TIDAL Amazon Music Spotify YouTube Music

Label Solid State RecordsThe LighthouseUnsorted 1999

hardcore hardcore punk metalcore post-hardcore

Be prepared for some pretty loud guitars, vocals, and drums when you listen to Selfmindead's self-titled debut on Solid State Records (a fairly new division of Tooth & Nail). This new band comes from Sweden, the country that gave us Blindside, Royal, and Extol.

I have read a lot about a band having a "wall of sound," but Selfmindead truly does. Pounding bass and drums not only lie underneath the crunchy guitars, but they share center stage at times with the guitars, too. Clean production, loud guitars, and disjoint rhythms add a beauty to these songs not found on a lot of hardcore records. It's that attention to detail that sets Selfmindead apart. Their songs end when they're finished; they don't keep playing on and on just to keep the song going. Each song serves as a little minuet encompassing rage, honesty, beauty, and sheer volume that you can pop in and listen while you pack your bag for school or eat a couple cookies and milk.

The band provides straightforward lyrics, too. Possibly in reference to some world events, in "Nothing Inside," they proclaim that "with power comes responsibility." In the song, "Lack," they tell their peers that:

You don't need to drink alcohol To have a good time. You don't need to drink, You don't have to take any drugs, To be cool. You don't have to take anything; You can be a king. But you are nothing Without your self-respect.

And "Clean" is probably an equivalent of a New Testament psalm:

You're so clean, With no stains. Personified perfection, Free from human shortcomings; I wish I could be just like You. Wash me in Your blood so that I can become clean.

Probably the only downfall on the record is that the majority of the vocals are distorted. It's nice for an effect once in a while, but I find that constant distortion gets old. Besides, the lead singer has a tremendous voice, and distorting it just doesn't do it justice. But, other than that one complaint, Selfmindead's debut is definitely a hardcore gem.