EP Review: Zero Again – ‘Revert To Nothing’

Zero Again, named after a Rudimentary Peni song, and made up of members and ex-members of Warwound, Grand Collapse, Stampin’ Ground, Regret et al, kicked off 2021 with debut EP ‘Out Of The Crooked Timber of Humanity’ – which was a swift, scabrous swing to the sack. Coming together as a result of lockdown, the Bristolian, plant-powered, DIY anti-fascists are wasting no time in following up with ‘Revert To Nothing’, again, another 5 doses of distilled displeasure.

It all kicks off with the rattily intro of ‘My World Now’, which then incorporates a sleek, glossy (yes! to those effects) guitar line. The main order of business is a crunchy, cascading canvas that instigates vocalist Dean (Ephemeral Foetus) into delivering a doom-roar diatribe that dissects *that* dickhead: “I am the greatest president there has even been..” Across both EPs actually, the lyrics are ‘of the times’ – forced isolation, social division, and the ongoing relevance of the untouchable, unaccountable governmental power, depicted in ‘Not As I Do’. Dictated by the snap of the snare, it’s a thrashy affair; the gang vocal surreptitiously introducing the currently futile dialogue between those that make the decisions and the voice of the masses – “public will has never meant that much..” End Side A.

Side B’s ‘Tomorrow Disappears’ muscles in with mid-paced momentum. It’s a lament to lethargy; a warning to make the most of whatever time is left: “I watch tomorrow disappear..”. For a message loaded with motivation, there’s contradiction in the descending chords, which drag the whole thing into the depths. Next up, ‘Angry Corpses’ has a thumpy, bassy intro (Nice tone, Glasper) that is laid to waste by an incessant, metronomic beat/bark. Concluding with ‘Making Sense Of Reality’, somewhat channelling the sound of a nervous breakdown, the EP whorls with maniacal laughter..Dark, distressing stuff.

Like gnarly, gritty, goth-tinged hellcore? ‘Revert To Nothing’ is limited to a pressing of 300, and (probably not) available through Kibou Records, so also try The Little Jans Hammer Records (ESP), Cimex Records (SWE) or Sick World Records (NZ). For more band updates, check out the Zero Again Facebook page.