Presenting ten tracks of somewhat metallic hardcore, Detroit's
Tyrant represent for their bombed-out city quite capably. This is punch-in-the-neck music for young, tonsured bros who throw around phrases like "the ultimate sacrifice" without ever having made any sacrifice greater than submitting to lengthy and painful tattoo sessions. OK, that's probably a little harsh, but hardcore has gone from being an authentic working-class voice within punk rock to a macho brotherhood as devoted to clichés and ritual as any religion. The riffs are in the same key, the same two drum patterns (breakdown and full-speed-ahead) are heard, the vocals are the same throat-clotted-with-rage bark/roar, the gang shouts come from in back -- it's hardcore, and it has no ambitions to ever be anything more. A guest appearance by Karl Buechner of
Earth Crisis only serves to point up the facelessness and group identity that is hardcore's trademark. All that being said, this is a good hardcore album -- the lessons of heavier acts like
Sick of It All,
Terror, and especially
Judge have not been lost on the members of
Tyrant, and any musclehead looking for a soundtrack to a street fight will certainly find
Prepare for Devastation more than suitable. ~ Phil Freeman