Society Hates- In God We Distrust

Artist: Society Hates
CD Title: In God We Distrust
Label: Self-released
Reviewer: Matthew Johnson
Date: 7/29/06

Despite the presence of thrash metal guitars, not to mention an album cover bedecked with inverted pentagrams and crosses, the debut album from Society Hates has less in common with Fear Factory and Ministry than with Converter and Terrorfakt. Though beefed up power chords add to the heaviness factor on tracks like "Ashes" and "Mankind," these are ultimately rhythmic noise tracks with extra instruments. "No Truth" is a particularly grueling collection of pounding beats and eerie electronic atmosphere, while "We Control" starts off with the flat buzzing of an analog synth before bursting forth in a flurry of drum machines and heavy metal. Though the stereotypical power noise artist comes off more like a laptop computer guy than a head-banging guitarist, Society Hates merges the two styles effortlessly; "Through Fear" brilliantly layers a sludgy guitar grind with industrial-strength drum programming and brooding piano, while "Bitter Filth" is a martial ode to breakbeats and keyboards that breaks off into tribal thrash guitars at the end. That you could bang your head to this music is not so surprising; that you could also get away with playing it in a power noise club, however, is a pleasant and unexpected discovery. If you like your power noise as gritty and violent as you can get it, Society Hates belongs in your CD collection alongside such other underground greats as HIV+ and WASTE.

Visit the Society Hates MySpace page at https://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=36052453" for sound samples and other information.