Over two years ago now, I was out on the road with First Blood and was lucky enough to have Born From Pain joining us for, I believe, their third or fourth US tour. Riding in a van for three weeks with people you've never met in your life always has a potential of being anywhere from awkward to unbearable. Alas, this was far from the case as Rob, Dom, Peter and Lukas were great tourmates in one of the more packed vans I've ever been in. They had come to the US to tour in support of a new LP entitled The New Future ... but here's the catch: they were releasing Mp3s online for free.
Now, let's keep in mind here ... Born From Pain is not some fly-by-night rookie band here. They have been releasing some of the heaviest hardcore over the past 15 years on a reputable European hardcore label known as Gangstyle alongside Metal Blade Records for their later albums giving them worldwide distribution. The decision to embark on an international tour to support the release of a free album is not something that I had ever heard of before ... especially from a band in their position.
Alongside a quick. decimating musical onslaught is a layout which paints a very bleak picture of the potential future of the planet. While nearly being a concept album, the continual lyrical theme throughout the album is the pending New World Order, growing government corruption, reasoning for civil unrest and the continual global governmental battle against liberty.
Now, anyone that knows me knows that one of my biggest pet peeves is when international bands write lyrics concerning American issues that they typically know nothing about. While I understand that US policy has a tendency have global implications which, in turn, effects people on the other end of the Earth, the last thing I need to hear is an Australian opinion on the Second Amendment or a Canadian's input on racism if that makes sense. Regardless, this album is one of the few cases where I truly value the lyrical insight into the state of my country. The comparisons between the current state of those united and Germany in 1933 is both invaluable and an example of the lyrical content on this release.
Musically the album provides 9 tracks in about 25 minutes. With 5 or 6 tracks being quite reminiscent of the Born From Pain we've surely all grown to know over the past decade and a half, there are also several tracks that explore into a very dark, industrial-tinged realm of the band. I remember being given my first taste of the album during one of our overnight drives on said tour after a listening session and subsequent discovery of mutual appreciation of Alphaville. Rob plugged in his Mp3 player without letting me see who the artist was and asked me what I thought. While I enjoyed it regardless, I knew it was some kind of trick question because of how both unique and obviously German it was. I assumed it was some type of side project that I somehow never caught wind of but it was, surprisingly, the new Born From Pain album that has not really left my rotation since then (in 2012).
I'm not too sure where the band's download link for this album is any more so it inspired me to make my own post for the album. I'm VERY curious to hear the follow-up release for this album to see if the band ventures further into the industrial/new wave realm that they were.
Don't be scared by my emphasis on this angle of the album ... there are still AT LEAST three songs on this disc which hold their own in the live set list right alongside Final Nail, Reclaiming The Crown, Death In The City and all the other classic Born From Pain tracks.
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