Madball
Ball Of Destruction

THE REVIEW

The NYHC always seemed different to me from the rest of the American scene for several reasons that I won't list here. Perhaps the most important reason is that it developed with a bit of delay compared to the rest of the country, but the fact remains that the musical and stylistic characteristics of the New York bands can be attributed to a common thread, namely NewYorkHardCore.

Many bands from this circuit, especially around the mid-'80s, were distinguished by a bellicose and proto-fascist attitude (above all Cro-Mags) and for turning their concerts into mega brawls between the audience and the police. Over the years, the New York scene expanded significantly, incorporating various styles and mentalities, also assimilating the straight edge movement and radicalizing it with groups like Youth of Today and Gorilla Biscuits.

Madball was born in 1989 as a side project of the NYHC godfathers, Agnostic Front. On vocals was a youngster named Freddy Cricien, none other than the younger brother of Roger Miret, singer of Agnostic Front, on guitar Vinnie Stigma, on bass Roger Miret himself, and on drums Will Shepler. This was the line-up of "Ball of Destruction" in broad terms (in some songs Matt Henderson is on second guitar) which would later change several times. "Ball of Destruction" gathers 22 tracks, mostly unused songs by Agnostic themselves, of super-fast and pure Hardcore punk, in perfect American tradition, reminiscent in style and brevity of "United Blood" and "Victims in Pain." There's no trace of originality in a genre that doesn't require it and from a band that never claimed it; what interests Madball is hitting you with these hardcore blows that are still completely free of metal and metalcore veins (God help me!!!! metalcore, just what we needed... ). 

"Colossal Man," "I'ts My Life," "Get Out," "Friend or Foe," "We Should Care," and all the others are explosive songs lasting just a handful of seconds that anyone who loves NYHC must hear. In the booklet, there are photos of Cricien as a child singing with a bandana on his head and wearing an Agnostic t-shirt!!!