Of all the hardcore bands that tried to crossover back in the mid 80s, Agnostic Front were easily one of the best and hands down the most consistent. They've also stuck around longer than most and this recent album, their ninth so far, has been produced by Madball frontman and vocalist Roger Miret's brother Freddy Cricien and it's titled Warriors.

Still intact are Vinnie Stigma's absolutely mad, thrashing, mostly downpicked, with occasional bursts of fast alternate picked hardcore riffs that are completely relentless throughout this multitude of short songs. Miret's vocals return to the old school hardcore pissed off shouts, a relief considering their last album Another Voice saw him try out a more modern approach which wasn't very Agnostic Front so to speak. Mike Gallo's clipping bass tone and his impressive grooves complement the guitar parts and lock down well with Steve Gallo's stellar savage drumming.

As far as the songs are concerned, this is crossover bible at its righteous best we're talking about. Addiction and Dead To Me open the album with moshy heavy-as-fuck hardcore anthems with chaotic gang choruses, delivered with a superlative attitude and a message. The same tone is maintained throughout this album with amazingly catchy tracks like Warriors, Black & Blue, No Regrets, Revenge, For My Family, By My Side and fuck, the whole damn thing, without showing any signs of letdown. Icing in the cake are these metal leads that appear every now and then on the album.

Expect a bit of nostalgia, a lot of brotherhood, a good message here and there along with their aggressive social commentary. “We support UNITY! We despise ignorance and hatred within our scene. The only people we should be at war with is those who oppress us, not with each other. Unite! Fight the system! Not ourselves! Believe – Hardcore!”. With such a straight-forward one-point agenda, Agnostic Front, after all these years are still relevant both musically and thematically. Nobody does it as well as these guys. With Warriors, they've released their best album all decade and a release that's easily better than these thrash revivalists that are all over the place this year. Play this and Sick of it All's latest/2006 release Death to Tyrants back to back and mosh the shit out of your room.



Year of Release: 2007
Label: Nuclear Blast