LC Meridian

Issue date: 11/1/06 Section: Arts & Entertainment

Media Credit: Stillborn Records

Icepick's latest album Violent Epiphany is a shockwave of powerful hardcore riffs with explosive vocals that make you want to punch your walls till your knuckles bleed. Icepick was only a side project started 1996, until one of their songs "Born to Crush You" appeared on The Ultimate Fighters Championship Soundtrack with other big time bands such as Sepultura, Hatebreed and many more.

Jamey Jasta, the frontman of Hatebreed, is responsible for the vocals on the album. Icepick has been a personal and long time side project of his. The group is signed to Jasta's record label, Stillborn Records, which he created, owns and controls. This means that Icepick has a lot of power riding behind them. Icepick became a major headline project soon after. "Violent Epiphany" hit cyberspace in April of this year and according to their MySpace page, they have sold over 20,000 copies by word of mouth alone.

What makes Icepick stand out so much? It's the garage band production value that makes it sound as hardcore should: rugged, violent and brutal. In addition to that are A-list guest vocalist (i.e. Ice T, Dropkick Murphey's, Agnostic Front, and Sheer Terror), making Icepick an intense debuting force that is gaining speed thanks to Jasta. Icepick is important not only because it has a slight melodic quality, but it also salutes the hardcore granddaddies such as Cro Mags. The album explodes as soon as it starts and the drumming kicks in fast and furious and unrelenting. Another special quality that Icepick has is the overlapping vocals of the guest with Jamey Jastas' voice. The band itself is made up of members from other bands. Aside from a few solos appearing in "Creations of Chaos" and "This Can Never Be Undone," Icepick is a

Media Credit: Stillborn Records Jamey Jasta and Lord Ezec of ICEPICK

straight-up hardcore band. Hammering drums and pulsating guitar sway very little from the formula set up by other hardcore bands such as Cro Mags.

However, Violent Epiphany does not have a single bad song on it. Anyone who listens to heavy music can sit down and hear this album and walk away with respect for the band and hardcore music because the music does it's job…it makes you want to jump in the mosh pit and unleash all your hate, anger, and frustration and THAT IS WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT!

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