Encierro – Doomsday Still Bleeds Red

Artist: Encierro

Title: Doomsday Still Bleeds Red

Release: LP / Digital

Year: 2024

Label: Bad Habits Records, So Dense Were The Flies, Subsistencia Distro

It seems that neocrust will always find a way to stay urgent, relevant and renewed. Hailing from Naarm (Melbourne), Australia, Encierro entered 2024 with a bang after an interesting demo in 2021 that showed their particular interest in the emo side of the subgenre. Their full-length debut Doomsday Still Bleeds Red is rooted in the neocrust tradition of the beginning of the century, and in its total duration of 26 intense and gloomy minutes it holds nothing back to tear the gray horizon.

The seven tracks that comprise Encierro’s debut album are as drawn to darkness as they are to rage. Named after the horrible event that takes place in Spain, and most famously in Pamplona, known as the “Running of the Bulls,” the band delves deep into the melodic influence of legends such as Ekkaia, Remains Of The Day, and Tragedy, along with later acts such as Morrow, Schifosi, and Autarch, attempting to forge their aesthetic identity while raging against modern capitalist society and the alienation it causes. Fittingly, the band’s logo and album art remind me of crust heroes Rogernomix from Te Whanganui-a-Tara (Wellington), Aotearoa / New Zealand.

What really makes Doomsday Still Bleeds Red stand out as a cathartic dark crust punk record worthy of attention is the quintet’s passion for perfecting their art while keeping the flame of unrest alive. It’s practically impossible to hear the lead melody of “The End” and not turn your head, or not appreciate the record’s production as a razor-sharp tool that emphasizes the chord progressions and crusty riffs without dipping into metal territory. Most of the tracks on the album have a short duration of two to four minutes, built on a tight compositional process that adheres to rhythm changes and d-beats, shifting gears or pulling the breaks while riding on dramatic guitars. For example, the opener “Jaws Of Winter” sets the tone early on and contains every aspect of Encierro’s sound in its short duration.

Encierro, however, take flight over the capitalist ruins when they present the epic eight-minute “Doomsday”. Featuring a guest appearance by Clare of local neocrusties Terra Mater, who also plays the violin on the track, Doomsday Still Bleeds Red manages to create a bleak yet hopeful atmosphere that makes the listener’s fists clench. In a climax that combines lyrics of dissent and resistance with epic and melodramatic neocrust leads, moving through rhythmic changes and the mood motions, the aforementioned track raises the black banners in the most beautiful way.

Encierro close the album in ageless crust punk fashion, as the duet of “Alerta” and “Foretold Future” is a compact representation of the various aspects of the band’s music. Doomsday Still Bleeds Red is an album that could resonate with anyone looking for a way to imagine a future free of oppression in this aspect of political hardcore punk music. With their melodic and passionate crust punk, Encierro attack the foundations of societal collapse without losing their humanity. Amidst the capitalist ruins, a message of hope, remembrance and resistance blossoms, gritty but beautiful like the melodies of Doomsday Still Bleeds Red.

Source: diyconspiracy.net