Album Review

Hack Job

Hexbridge Youth Crew

(Pea Brain / CBRG / DTR / Rip Roaring Shit Storm)

7″ | DL | Streaming

Out 3 October 2025

A new offering from grindcore and power violence exponents Hack Job sees them step down a gear slightly to deliver up some prime gnarly metal-tinged punk.  Horror fiction mingles with real world reality checks with humour never far away says Nathan Brown.

Hack Job are mates of mine and always a welcome addition to any gig on the SoutHCoast DIY HC scene. Now that this 3 piece is separated by 400 odd miles with competing work and life commitments, we have to be patient. We may not get to see them often – or hear new recordings – but when we do it’s worth the wait.

They can always be relied upon to bring a bit of humour, satire, biting political commentary and common sense into the grind and power violence scene which is all too often hostage to weird macho bullshit (see their song “Porngrind go fuck yourself” on the split with Hooked On Christ as exhibit one). They also LOVE horror, sci-fi and fantasy films (check the cover image taken from Blood On Satan’s Claw) and HATE religion. And they really do have a knack for word play which makes it all a lot more fun.

The Hack Job experience is typically short bursts of fast, intense noise (and in a live situation always punctuated by an appreciative cheer from the assembled masses). On this outing they have gone practically prog with songs over a minute long. Although there is still a touch of grind core and power violence to the general attack, this collection of songs is a bit longer and more, dare I say it, tuneful. It’s still raw. They still switch between heavy sections and blisteringly fast sprints, but you have the time to settle into the pace.

This gives this EP the feel of the fast UK hardcore coming out on labels like Flat Earth in the 90s and the noisier and faster punk bands of the mid-late 80s that would be granted a Peel Session. From the heady days of Heresy, ENT, Chaos UK through to every band that Sned played in (a reference lost on anyone outside of the DIY punk scene). For those punk rockers of a certain age if you liked the Sedition/Pink Turds In Space split album this will be right up your alley (yes, I hear elements of both sides).

Both faces of this 7″ EP are just over 5 minutes, littered with illustrative and amusing samples, so they’ve pushed right up against the physical constraints of what you can fit on a small slab of vinyl at 45rpm (33rpm generally reducing the quality).

But enough about the music. What are they grunting and screaming about? Hack Job flip between singing about fantasy and reality, with some songs leaving a foot in each camp. By referencing the make believe and the macabre they hold up a mirror to the absurdity of real life.  Their tongue in cheek humour makes being pissed off at the world fun.

From my research the opener Hexbridge Youth Crew seems to be a reference to fantasy fiction. Following up only Hack Job could have a song about The Torment of Edward Mordake – the subject is an urban legend, born in the 19th century as the heir to an English peerage with a face at the back of his head. This perfectly sums up their twisted humour and interest in the bizarre.

The daily grind (as opposed to the grind core) gets a look in on Punched and Bored. No, not fans of work. Dilligas that its an acronym for Does It Look Like I Give A Shit. Kind of does what it says on the tin in the spirit of “two digits rampant” punk.

Planet Of The Apers shows the Hack Job wordplay at work. They’re Coming To Get You Barbara is part tribute to The Night of The Living Dead, and part real politik – as they point out, there are genuine monsters in the real world. The Hack Job boys also fess up to their shared love of role play games in Full Frontal Nerdity. The observant will notice the “D20” side to the record. For the uninitiated that’s a 20 sided die, as used by role players across the globe.

Conspiracy To Defraud shows their contempt for conspiracy theorists who misdirect while the rich get on with ripping us all off in plain sight. Despite the annoyance they retain their sense of humour with couplets like “Failing to separate fiction from fact. Flinching at phantoms in your tin foil hat”. Great stuff. Lyrically their familiar disdain for the hate and money grubbing by organised religion is present in Black Hole (with a lengthy evangelical sample) and Jesus Christ Superstore – which gets top marks for the song title alone.

Phantom Limb captures the frustration of having to put up with “ill aimed leaden jokes” fighting the overwhelming desire to punch someone’s lights out. Surely we’ve all felt that? Chat Shit, Get Banged as the youth say.

This EP is an energetic burst of humour and ire mixing fantasy with reality that should leave you with a grin on your face if you like fast hardcore punk rock with a lick of metal. Did I mention the white vinyl?

The physical format is out on 3rd October, available from the band via bandcamp.

Find Hack Job on Facebook.

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Words by Nathan Brown. You can read more from Nathan on his Louder Than War archive over here.