The Blackout Argument
Decisions

November 2007
Released: 2007, Lifeforce Records
Rating: 3.5/5
Reviewer: Anders Sandvall

DECISIONS is the debut album of the German act The Blackout Arguments. The band rose from the ashes of the underground band Paint the Town Red and Flyswatter in early 2006. Prior to this album they released two EPs. The Blackout Argument delivers straight A-class hardcore with sheer brutality mixed with some rock. The lead singer sings both aggressive and ordinary lead vocals and in parts of the songs we can find some very sing-a-long-friendly passages.

Byron Davies (God Forbid), Benni Buss (Flowing Tears) and Gert Van Der Velde (ex- Shai Hulud/The Architect) guest on a few of the songs and if you’re into hardcore in the slightest I promise you that you’re going to find this album very interesting. The band used Suiseidi Studio in Munich and producer Philip Seidl. Seidl created the perfect raw sound for the band to play around in. The lyrics are honest and downright personal.

I do have problems with the material, however it’s easier to pick out the songs that didn’t make it instead of the ones that did. “Glassbead Game” is an acoustic ballad which is plain and boring; “The Die Song” consists of someone who reads a speech to a metal beat; “My Life in Spoken Words” is a very slow and unimpressive ballad; and last but definitely least is “A Fulltime Tragedy” which is as tragic as the title says. It’s a mid-tempo song with aggressive lead vocals and generic beat. All of these songs could have been erased and earned the band a little higher rating, because I would like to give them higher but can’t.

Aside from the lows I just mentioned, the rest of the album is great and worth listening to. DECISIONS is an album for all hardcore lovers in the world.