Dystopia (USA) - The Aftermath (1999)Release ID: 4379
The Aftermath exists in two formats, the original 19-minute four-track vinyl EP and the CD / streaming version with nine bonus tracks that runs for almost 45 minutes. The latter version contains the four tracks the band contributed to a 1995 split with Oakland crust punk band Skaven, the three tracks from their own 1997 Backstabber 7" EP, their track, "Diary of a Battered Child", from a split single with L.A. psychedelic crew, Suffering Luna and a one-minute track called "Cosmetic Plague", which is from a 1996 VA comp ironically called Whispers!. This review is for the extended version.
Dystopia are one pissed-off band, with a whole armoury of axes to grind, be it corporate greed, prejudice, injustice or self-loathing, if you name it then Dystopia have got a beef with it. Of course this makes for some gloriously feral-sounding sludge that leans heavily into the hardcore / crust vibe with ominous, downtuned riffing and some gloriously pounding and relentless drumwork from the superb Dino Sommese who has got to be one of the best punk drummers going.
The first four tracks which constitute the original EP are the best, especially from a metalhead's point-of-view, as these are not only the best-produced tracks, but also the most metal-sounding, with huge, downtuned riffs and thundering drumwork counterpointing the seething, furious vocal delivery for a nineteen-minute onslaught of true sludge metal violence. Dystopia make no concession to the stoner element that often creeps into sludge metal, this is pure, undiluted vitriol and venom and isn't meant to be heard as anything other than an attack on those with who the band have taken issue, so there's no druggy-like instrumental breaks to provide any relief from this aural warfare. This is the sound of a band who really mean it.
The bonus tracks, which were all released earlier than the first four, lean even more into the punk side of sludge metal. They are generally shorter, less well-produced, more simply structured and some of the lyrical content is a bit less sophisticated. Three or four of these bonus tracks feature samples as intros, which is often a feature of protest music, but of which I am not a fan and which bring nothing much to the table here either. I love me some punk, so I found these bonuses to be entertaining enough, but they may not appeal as much to someone not as enamoured of hardcore or crust as myself. There is still a metallic element to all but the final track, but it is less pronouced than that of the original four tracks and they are without a doubt the main draw for most listeners, certainly from Metal Academy anyway.
As such, I look upon this as a high quality EP of true sludge metal, as it was originally conceived, that contains a fair set of bonus tracks that chart the evolution of the band from a hardcore / crust origin to an accomplished crossover metal act.
