Originally going under the banner of Gran Toucher this UK grind outfit decided to opt for Human Cull as the bands name after endless line ups. With a handful of demo releases and one EP titled “Human Cull”, “Split Second Extinction” is the first under the new moniker. Anyone with any familiarity with grindcore will know it possesses an active and contagious underground scene with a plethora of acts using a variety of online download outlets as a means for getting their product out to discerning noise, powerviolence, grind and hardcore fanatics worldwide without having to proverbially bend over and take a shafting financially with label backing. This isn’t to knock speciality grind labels that endeavour to stay true to the scenes true values, far from it, there are plenty of underground independent labels specialising in the most extreme music available on the planet.

Grindcore has been of interest to me over the years as I’ve dipped in and out of the scene as my mood has taken me usually catalysed by barbaric releases such as the latest Terrorizer album and indeed this one from Human Cull who definitely don’t do subtle. An 11 track grindcore album is bound to be short and indeed the album clocks in less than nine minutes. Human Cull has powerviolence elements mixed with more familiar grind styles. Some parts sound like Fuck…I’m Dead such is the mechanical terror of the drumming, whereas some aspects border the ferocious and frenzied pulverising of a band like Pig Destroyer. The snare drum sound is terrifyingly effective much like the aforementioned Pig Destroyer. Most bands have groove facets and Human Cull is no different, a little shorter maybe, but “Oblivion Sleepwalkers” is a good example. The vocals are roared and bellowed, with little in the way of guttural toilet flushing and no pig squealing antics focussing the angst in a more hardcore direction. I thought the riff in “Man Is The Problem” was immense and “Misinformed” has a very early Napalm Death style and beat to it. The one where Napalm pause for a riff followed by a fucked up cymbal smash to signal the all out grind assault. Slowest and most epic tune is “Resentment” which is a mammoth two minutes, with the rest being well under a minute for the most part, as the song sits firmly entrenched in sludge.

Grindcore music isn’t for everybody but when it’s played this well and with such bloodthirsty violence then I just love it. There are plenty of online sites to freely download grind as well so have a delve into the world of really extreme music, not just grind, but noisecore, powerviolence, electrogrind, hardcore, crust etc. One of the best ways is to get hold of a compilation such as “Operation Grindcore Vol 1.” to check out a dozen bands or so very quickly indeed.

7.5/10 (Martin Harris) 

http://www.goatprayerrecords.com

http://humancull.bandcamp.com

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Human-Cull/147348822026841