NERVY – Nikdy Jsme Si Nebyli Rovni, Ani Ve Smrti Nebudeme

Artist: NERVY

Title: Nikdy jsme si nebyli rovni, ani ve smrti nebudeme

Release: LP / Digital

Year: 2022

Label: DIY Koło Records, Hardcore For The Losers, High Forehead Press

We’ve never been equal, nor will we be in the moment of death; that’s the English translation of the title of NERVY’s debut album, Nikdy jsme si nebyli rovni, ani ve smrti nebudeme. Scattered across the Czech capital Prague and the historical city of Olomouc in Moravia region, NERVY features members of prolific DIY hardcore punk bands like Lakmé, Remek, and Gattaca, among others.

I know for sure many people would like to see a new album from either Remek or Gattaca, but while both bands are on indefinite hiatus some of the members formed NERVY in 2021 as a homage and tribute to the dark yet melodic style of Portland, Oregon hardcore icons Tragedy. For a long time, the term Tragedy-style hardcore has been used as a kind of an insult by holier-than-thou record reviewers in a lot of fanzines across the world. For me, however, it’s always been among the best types of hardcore and crust music, especially when the bands sing in their native tongue.

Nikdy jsme si nebyli rovni… is restless and relentless. Forget about long compositions and overcomplicated songwriting. These nine tracks are fast, angry and thrashy while also tight as hell. The guitar tone is just perfect, the d-beats are rolling in a galloping march towards the apocalypse, and the barking vocals really sound as if Tragedy’s Billy Davis and Todd Burdette have learned Czech. In contrast to so many epic sounding bands, NERVY are all about stripping things back to their barest essentials: aggressive, desperate hardcore, painting bleak pictures of the world. It’s the classic Tragedy sound and outlook, though other Tragedy-adjacent bands like Deathreat, Warcry, and No Parade also come to mind when listening to the album. The entire record was self-recorded in a studio at SF MINI, an autonomous DIY venue and skateboarding spot in Olomouc to which the band is closely connected. The production is usually one thing that could make or break an album of this sort, so kudos to the crew for making it sound the way it has to be.

Nikdy jsme si nebyli rovni… is neither an overproduced stadium crust, nor an unlistenable screed. It’s a fine release, complete with a lively sound capturing both NERVY’s crust punk harshness and emotional intensity. I don’t think anyone who like Portland’s dark hardcore could hear this record and not get into it.

The LP was self-released by the band in cooperation with DIY Koło Records (Poland), Hardcore For the Losers (Austria) and High Forehead Press (Slovakia).

Source: diyconspiracy.net