Haest – Wildfires & Site Unseen

Why release a double EP on one album you may ask, and yes so did I (not directly to the band though, they might eat me! haha), well without boring you and myself with the ins and outs, or me even bothering to doing the homework (so if I’m wrong who actually gives a fuck) it looks like this is the previously released EP from back in 2024 ‘Sight Unseen’ & the new unreleased ‘Wildfires EP’, which I do believe was a conscious decision to show just how the band has evolved from then to now, although you get the new stuff first and then the older, so that might throw my theory off kilter a little, but you know what I mean.

All shit aside, and totally forgetting what I said I the last paragraph, you might just wanna hear how this “album” pans out and is this the same band that arrived on the scene back in 2018 with some pretty intense doom laden hardcore sounds, a band that still scares the fuck out of me, and I’ve not even seen them live yet.

So to give you some kind of insight into this their first album, and hopefully get you to go listen to this ridiculously great band, and regardless of ever hearing them, or not, before, this little piece of scribble might send you over to listen to the new and emboldened Haest.  I’ll start at the end, as this seems the best way to describe this album in words, but definitely listen to it the right way round, that works musically, as to my ears the first half is less aggressive to new listeners (not by much though).  Sight Unseen comprises five songs on the album, its a step into the world of Hardcore with hints of Fugazi and Nirvana spinning around the edges of the tornado.  Don’t let the song title ‘You Look Like How Ketchup Smells’ fool you, this isn’t a fanciful Bowling for Soup song, this is punk rock at its ballsiest since Cro-Mags or Minor Threat. When this EP first hit back in 2024, its was only then that this band with their new drummer Rich Jones onboard found a place in my heart, I remember reviewing ‘Anomie’ back in 2020 and not fully getting the sound, the chemistry now, is just right. What hasn’t changed though, is the song titles, they reflect the bands lives and things they overhear when living said life.  But this doesn’t in anyway make them less impactive in reflecting our rotten society and unpredictable moments still prevail.

Now let’s jump to the start, the newest and boldest of this bands music so far.  The grunge guitar, the clingy bass and the unique vocals are still alive and well, but with the now growing drum sound, this is a set of songs that have embraced a Killing Joke meets Idles sense of being. But that wouldn’t be very new or exciting would it, so this band have taken the bull by the horn and created a storm for you all to try and get to the eye of. The new songs power along with no intention of stoping for anything that gets in their way. For myself, the stand outs were firstly the longest and strangest titled song ‘If You Don’t Think Killing This Planet Is Worth 7 Jesus Lizard Albums, Then Your An Idiot’, this is an opener with feeling and atmosphere, a song from the bowls of frustration alley. Then ‘Another Good Word Is Homeowner’ got my attention more than most, its hardcore RPM that’s filled with deep and unanswerable meaning (made that bit up, no idea what it all meant, but its great) that grabbed me by the throat and even made me wonder if they added some Mongolian Throat singing how good it would have been too.

Enter from the beginning, get to the end and tell me you didn’t feel like you’d been rung out through a mangle, and I’ll say your lying! Listen, Listen, and Listen again, then go listen live (I will eventually) and you’ll get it.

Out February 28th Via TNSRecords

Pre-order HERE for UK and HERE for U.S

Click HERE for everything else Heast