Inner Conflict – At any time

Inner Conflict is a DIY hardcore punk band from Cologne, Germany that has been making a name for themselves since 1992. Over the years, they’ve evolved into a more melodic musical direction, but have remained true to their radical political leanings, releasing tracks for various benefit compilations and splits with legendary bands like Sin Dios, Juggling Jugulars, Malgobierno, and Yacøpsæ.

Inner Conflict’s 2004 full-length, Anschlusstreffer, remains a personal favorite of mine, with catchy, melodic and energetically angry tracks like “Promises”, “Ab Dafür” and “C4courage”. Like most European DIY bands with such a long history, most of their records can still be found cheap in some second-hand record boxes and distros worldwide.

The fact that Inner Conflict are still active after three decades is impressive, especially with their recent releases like the 2018 EP First They Take Manhattan Then They Take Kalk and the latest record At any time, just recently dropped in November 2023. The addition of a new drummer has also brought a fresh energy boost to the band.

At any time delivers seven new tracks that continue Inner Conflict’s trend of blending fast, melodic punk with hints of ’90s emo influences, complemented by the dynamic interplay of female and male vocals. While melodic punk isn’t typically my go-to genre, Inner Conflict’s vocalist Jenny stands out with her genuine singing talent that somehow reminds me of singers like Nathalie of Petrograd and Magali of La Fraction. Notably, despite the English album title, the lyrics are all in German, which adds to the cohesiveness of the record, as it was a bit odd to switch from German to English from song to song like on the aforementioned Anschlusstreffer LP.

Post-2010, the band’s stepped up their game. The production quality and songwriting have matured, crafting emotionally laden German lyrics delivered with genuine passion and conviction. At any time might not redefine punk or hardcore, but it’s a solid pick for anyone into good melodic punk that veers away from the usual d-beat, crust and metal we usually write about.