I like my bands raw and full of emotion with a hint of intelligence. A bare and abrasive aesthetic is what drove me to hardcore in the first place. The energy, the thrill, and hell, even the names got me in a sweaty, dizzy daze ever since I was 15. So when I got "Dying To Live" by the Aneurysm Rats, I was interested not only by the artwork or name, but also by the song titles. Any musician that plays in a band can tell you that a name should be memorable and intriguing, so I was pretty excited from the opening note to the last when listening to this. Doing my research, I found out that this band has members of Paint It Black and None More Black in it and that's when I got even more excited. Nevermind the fact that they're from a scene as strong as Philly's.

It's a short, fast, and pissed off visceral 15 minutes of old style melodic hardcore that hooks you in from the opening chord to the very last all while being enjoyable. While having the sound of something that would come out of the eighties, maybe mid-nineties, Aneurysm Rats surpass all their contemporaries in the genre of hardcore that I haven't heard much to be excited about in the recent year or two.

This band is incredible and should be recognized for not their members past projects, but for their songwriting and hard work. I can only say good things about this band and hopefully you can too. Check these guys out online or live if you're tired just like I was with new music. This is probably my favorite release of the year.