Can you fucking believe this place? This country in which I and a lot of people live, is in fucking disarray. It would be funny if it wasn’t actual reality and people weren’t bleeding and dying in the street. There probably are going to be more intros like this as long as this activity lasts, so, you know. Just start with graph 2.

California-based crust maulers Arüspex are living in this hell as well, and while the music on “The Death Instinct” may not be inspired by the past few weeks, it has the volcanic reaction that this insanity deserves. Over nine hellacious tracks, the band (I cannot find a lineup anywhere) bulldozes through the forces of oppression, smothering with dashes of punk, hardcore, and metal, leaving no sonic stone unturned as they pave their own path of destruction toward justice.

“The Pyre” opens with drums rampaging, guitars surging, and beastly wails, punk fire making this thing go. Nasty fire spits as the fury hits a fevered pitch, blistering to the end. “Elegant Decay” is sooty and melodic, vicious, infernal energy sparking veins, melting into colder guitars that bring a freeze. Then the piece comes unglued, speed taking over and torching, riffs spewing urgency, and a finish that spirals out. “Wither” starts with punchy, catchy playing, howls scarring, the energy turning deeper toward hardcore. The vocals go off as the pace tramples, leaving everything under inches of smoldering ash. The title track blows through the doors, drums crashing, chilling guitars leaving shivers, the vocals tearing open congealing wounds. A breath of calm takes over as guitars swim through muck only to find detonation on the other end, blackness blasting through raspy wails and explosives that make the ground shake.

“In the Black” opens with a clip about global economic greed, and then it works into a hypnotic pace, the growls menacing, a sense of rawness reddening flesh. Guitars charge but also flow cleanly, the cries rippling over top, burning brightly. “The Only Constant” starts more calmly, but it isn’t long until the vocals are tearing through the earth, the bass thickening, and metallic bursts igniting and spitting cinders. The playing jolts as the pace grows more channeled, wails wrenching over an ashen ending. “Ask Your God” brings nasty guitars, wild cries, and the pace breaking apart the earth, stunning as drums punish. Leads glimmer as the bass tramples, the wails of, “We will get what we deserve!” resonating deep within the bones. “Modern Conditions” has the bass clobbering, punk energy driving, and heat hanging in the air. The tempo rips sanity apart, raspy howls make direct impact, and melodies trample, bringing this to a dusty end. Closer “Despair Is a Weapon” is electric and monstrous, bringing ferocity and active guitars, blazing a scorched trail. The playing races even harder as howls lash at muscles, the tempo uproots, and everything dissolves into a strange time warp.

Arüspex show no sonic mercy on “The Death Instinct,” an album that should jar awake anyone who somehow has slept through tyranny. Their crusty, deathy, punk-driven ferocity is infectious and volatile, which should be a warning sign to any who oppose them. This is an era that needs music as pissed off as many of us, and Arüspex deliver that with blood and fire.

For more on the band, go here: https://aruspexcrust.bandcamp.com/

To buy the album, go here: https://aruspexcrust.bandcamp.com/album/the-death-instinct

For more on the label, go here: https://fiadh.bandcamp.com/