Dying For It – Born To Deny

This one comes out swinging with a decent recording and a powerful mix of melodic hardcore and heavier breakdowns. Dying For It is a hardcore band from Redding, CA that formed in 2015 and this is their second release to date.

Born To Deny is sometimes heavy, sometimes bold and aggressive, but overall it remains a catchy and compelling record. Musically, it’s influenced by everyone’s favorite hardcore bands like American Nightmare, Modern Life is War, Go It Alone, and The Suicide File. The lyrics revolve around the idea of self and body image. It’s about the struggle to accept yourself and embrace the fucked up things in life that destroy you. Loneliness, isolation, and self-hatred are recurring themes in the songs, as well as personal accounts of emotional trauma experienced in abusive relationships.

In “Predator,” singer Rikki V. screams “Eat shit, sex predator,” making a bold statement in a very straightforward way. The closing song “Under His Eye” takes on organized religion and how misogyny, rape and the denial of basic human rights have been justified under the guise of belief in God.

Born To Deny is a dynamic, driving and cohesive hardcore punk record that will resonate with many of you both musically and lyrically. At first glance and listen I wasn’t that impressed because I listen to way too many hardcore bands these days, but after reading the lyrics I realized that this is an honest and powerful effort from a band that actually has something to say. There are so many of these so-called melodic or modern sounding hardcore bands, but only a few of them really stand out. That’s why I’m a bit skeptical on this first listen. So give it a chance and see if you like it.

Luckily, Dying For It are touring a lot and sharing the stage with bands like Rats In The Wall, Shelter and Fireburn. Check them out if you see that name near you. Thanks to Safe Inside Records for putting out some of the best hardcore bands out there.