Kill the Client - Escalation of Hostility

circus_brimstone

Forest: Sold Out
Jul 5, 2003
5,154
13
38
41
Indiana
Kill the Client – Escalation of Hostility
Willowtip Records – WT-042 – November 22nd, 2005
By Jason Jordan

killtheclient.jpg


This year Willowtip, a label usually known for several forms of death metal, decided to tap into the grind keg and it just so happens that Rotten Sound, Circle of Dead Children, and Kill the Client seeped out. The latter are like Nasum on speed. Conveniently, Escalation of Hostility – the follow-up to 2004’s Wage Slave – is the record company’s grand finale to a year filled with monumental proceedings.

Kill the Client sprint through most of their sophomore album, though they aren’t afraid of dragging the tempo during a couple anomalies. The first eight songs – especially “Liberty or Death” – scamper by in a blur, but “Killing Field” and “Negative One” slow it down a bit. The others, however, are swift and chaotic. Oddly enough, the production is abnormally smooth, and it rivals the best grind production values I’ve ever heard. The musicianship, though not exactly the pinnacle of Escalation of Hostility, is quite awe-inspiring, but perhaps the greatest thing about Kill the Client is their proclivity for brutal, cyclonic confrontations. And, at half an hour, the album drives its point home without overstaying, or understaying, its welcome.

Nasum and Rotten Sound apostles might as well hop on the bandwagon right now, because Escalation of Hostility is an admirable piece of work. Admittedly, out of the entire 2005 Willowtip catalog, this will probably be the most overlooked album. I’m in no position to argue against that – guesses are guesses. Still, Kill the Client deserve as much time as their neighbors, especially for fans of tenacious grindcore. Similarly, don’t ignore The Dying Light’s The Killing Plan and Neuraxis’s Trilateral Progression if death metal is your thing. Speaking of, Willowtip Records – citing their recent death and grind excursions – has been the label to watch during the past twelve months. Their consistency is baffling, but I am thankful for it.

8/10

Official Kill the Client Website
Official Willowtip Records Website