Despite having only existed as a unit for a couple of years, At No End’s Building the Rebellion speaks loudly and proudly of years of experimentation with and refinement of the hardcore sound, combining all of the most extreme elements of the music scene into one mammoth blast to the face of the listener.

“No Mercy for the Weak” sets the stage for the aggressive At No End sound with riffs torn straight out of the glory days of Pantera, structures that call to mind Slayer and all the brutality of Madball.

That Madball aggression returns again and again on tracks like “Vengeance is Best Served Cold” and even more so on the straight-up hardcore tracks like “Kicked to the Curb” and “Resistance”. There’s also an obvious ability to change influences and styles from track to track without losing any of the rage, as evidenced by the almost Oi-like chorus to “We Had Enough”. “No Justice” and “Predator”, on the other hand, display a straight thrash sensibility while still maintaining their hardcore edginess.

The guys in At No End apparently aren’t content to simply pummel the listener into submission, however. Tracks like “MDK” display an old-school approach to composition and structure and throughout the disc there is an uncommon level of attention paid to both the lyrics and the cleanness of the vocals. Their message may be all about violence, but they obviously want to make sure that the listener doesn't miss the point.

With a sound and approach designed to appeal to a broad range of listeners and the passion and skill to do it all so convincingly, At No End offers a glimpse into the future of the hardcore scene. With focus and precision replacing the all-too-common undirected rage, At No End truly is building a rebellion within the underground scene.

-Late

LarryMac
larrymac@domaincleveland.com
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"Hit you like a freight train" are the first words barked out by At No End vocalist Jack Sabolich on the debut full length album Building The Rebellion, and no other phrase could be more accurate. Right from the beginning, Building The Rebellion kicks you in the face and makes you beg for more. The intensity of this release continues throughout the entire album, making you wonder when it's going to let up... but not wanting it to stop. This Cleveland native hardcore metal band brings such intensity to the table that it makes most "hardcore metal" types blush. From the first second of the opening track "No Mercy For The Weak" to the closing moments of "Code Of Honor," the frenetic energy of one of the premiere metal bands in the Midwest never lets up. Building The Rebellion is one of those rare releases that perfectly captures the intensity of At No End's live shows, to the point that you want to gather up some friends and start a mosh pit in your living room. (And I can tell you from experience, nothing is quite as cathartic as screaming along with "MDK" live.) It has equal parts high-tempo, head-banging fury, and fist-pumping scream-along-with-the-band brutality, and unlike the vast majority of bands that call themselves "hardcore metal" these days, none of it smacks of pandering to the masses. The blue-collar work ethic and ideals indigenous to Cleveland are present in the lyrics, some examples of which deal with loyalty, revenge and standing against weakness. The powerful lyrics and Jack's inimitable vocals are driven with Tommy Packard's undeniably furious guitar riffs, Don Forrester's nut-shattering bass, and Kenny Easterly's jaw-droppingly killer drumming. It's not hard to see why they've become one of the biggest and best metal bands in Ohio, and I don't think it's a stretch to say that, with a couple more great releases like Building The Rebellion, they could conceivably become one of the national top dogs in the genre. In short, this is the album every hardcore metal band wishes they could do.
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