Monday 2 April 2018

CADENCE FOX

BandCADENCE FOX aka The Codex
GenresPunk / Chaotic Hardcore / Metallic Hardcore / Screamo / Noise / Math Rock / Experimental
Related artistsMeth., Tweak, Lower Your Head For The Treatment Machine, Split Tongue, Wild Abandon, Women Drivers, Nimitta, Year Of Arcada, Der Mond, Seb Alvarez and Other Masquerades.
CountryChicago, Illinois U.S.A.
Years Active2008-present
Song: "Spearheaded"
Album: "Masses of Program"
Year: 2017
For fans ofThe Armed, Meth., Fear Before The March Of Flames, Gaff, SeeYouSpaceCowboy, Polina, Annakarina, Kodan Armada, The Fall Of Troy, Love Like Electrocution, My Heart To Joy At The Same Tone, Dear Tonight, Ruptures, Hot Cross, Remote, Botch, Tweak, Carved Up, Creepozoidz, Coarse, Norma Jean, The Chariot and Von Wolfe aka PROPER SCREAMO.
Label(s): Bridal Horse Records
This post's artist is from the February 2018 Mix. This is track #2.
You can download: the March 2018 Mix#3 right here or get the new April 2018 Mix#4 here.

CADENCE FOX released an EP in late 2017 titled 'Masses of Program' which was brought to my attention by online friend Seb Alvarez, who has played in a plethora of awesome bands. It was one or two spots shy of making my Best Of 2017 list, likely because I only jammed it in the final weeks of December and didn't grasp its complete awesomeness until early 2018. At this point in time the band fuses together chaotic hardcore with mathy and noodley guitar elements to create a vicious yet intoxicating mixture of Fear Before The March Of Flames, The Chariot and Hot Cross.

Their history is a bit of a blur and, to be honest, after researching their history I've come to the conclusion that the newer release is much more refined and engaging than their earlier efforts. It looks as though the band formed in 2009 from the ashes of Year Of Arcada and the project was initially titled The Codex. They released an LP in 2009 as a self titled cdr 'The Codex'. The all-instrumental LP is worth a listen but not really representative at all of the band around today, and it was recorded in their basement and handed out at shows.

Their first proper release would be 'Macaroni Art' 7"EP, which must have followed shortly after their first show, which was in February of 2010. It contains three tracks of subterranean, experimental hardcore that has a sludgy and dirty feel to it. There's no singing as well as no all-out screaming, everything is somewhere in the shouted in-between. "Shootout" definitely sounds the most like their later material and boasts some sick guitar riffs and dual vocalists, falling somewhere between Ultra Dolphins and The Fall Of Troy. That same year the band released another cdr demo, this time titled 'Frustration Palace' which was handed out at shows just like 'The Codex'. I have been unable to get a hold of this but apparently it houses some unreleased tracks as well as some stuff later re-recorded for the proper cd full length that came out in 2012.

It was around here that the band stopped using their blogspot account and had been changing bassists frequently. After regrouping, they released the previously mentioned cdLP, 'Metaphors for the Decline of Humanity' is the band's first jump into new stuff that they are still okay with keeping on their bandcamp, as everything from 2011 and prior has been pulled. The title track has some interesting guitar sprawls and the vocals take a turn and embrace a screamier, shrieker style. In general I think the album can be likened to Fear Before The March Of Flames both vocally (like the hoarse singer) and instrumentally. They also utilize a lot of playful, dizzying riffs not unlike with Hot Cross and Gaff. Two of the 11 tracks are updated from the 'Macaroni Art' EP and sound much better. And it's weird, for someone who likes the heavier stuff, my favourite track on this record is the ambient and distant "Wilderness", which is very chill and reminds me a bit of Baltimore's The Usual. The song isn't slow all the way through but the opening minute sure is, and then they get their groove on and move into more Hot Cross guitar territory, stealing the show. The band must have realized this too because they made a music video for it, linked here and embedded further down in this post. There's also the lengthy "Red Sky In Morning" at nearly 9 minutes and the quick, 22-second jaunt that is "Womb Fury (Fuck You)", but regardless of the time neither have the payout that some of the other tracks can give you.

'-Channels-' is the darkest and most eerie and experimental material, but it still stays rooted in their style, it just branches out more than the other releases. It opens with "Glass", a heavy and dense concoction of dark, brooding post-hardcore that is as venomous as it is mesmerizing. This seems like quite a departure from the previous release, but as the EP continues similarities become more obvious, such as the bombastic parts of "Jonestown" (but not the ghostly vocals in the verses), the guitar riffing on "Harlow" and structure of closer "Riker Ave.". Similarities included, this is still a very different beast from all of their previous work and second in sound only to their newest release.

Speaking of their newest release, CADENCE FOX took quite some time to write and record it, as they took a break from releasing material. There was nothing in 2014, 2015, 2016 and most of 2017. But in very late 2017 they dropped the stunning 'Masses of Program' EP. Honestly, if you like the band's earlier work this will likely fucking floor you. The seven songs are way more engaging, powerful, urgent, chaotic and unrelenting aka just the way Dave likes'em. Opener "[a malkin withdrawn]" is a 24-second audio clip touching on the topic of illusion that acts as a nice catapult for the screamy math-metal and chaotic hardcore that spews forth from the first second onward of "Spearheaded". This song fires on all cylinders, bringing to mind Norma Jean, The Chariot, Von WolfeSeeYouSpaceCowboy and Coarse with a slight touch of Fear Before The March Of Flames, but this time the similarities lie in both band's heaviest and strongest material. There's a killer, proggy jam halfway thru that transitions to a mindfuck from two minutes onward. Also, the vocals on this release are venomous, thick and higher pitched than their previous releases and they truly bring the entire package together. "Aloka Kasina" is next and it barely surpasses a minute but manages to lay waste to the listener nonetheless and wraps the song up with a stick of goddamned dynamite. Title track "Masses of Program" is next and is a bit of a balancing act between the ferocious style oozing from this release and the experimental stuff contained on '-Channels-'. The first minute is like a two-by-four to the face, while the second is a hazy, drug-induced meandering and the final acting as the vessel for a very well executed climax. "The Forced Seduction of Adeline Flowers" has a dreary and somber opening before ripping shit up, and the Josh Scogin vocals are more apparent than ever here. The sassy midsection sounds just like SeeYouSpaceCowboy and the latter half dips into dreamy rock with intermittent blasts of noise. "Bringer of Light" brings it back under the two-minute mark and spends the first minute shredding earholes and the second creating a bizarre mixture of noise and electronic elements. Closer "Projection" is another fucking siiiiiiiick track that opens at full speed with a dizzying array of riffs and pounding drums amidst deep shrieks. The song shifts to a groovy section with some dual vocals before reverting back to the noodley beginning and then hits that The Chariot chord. Before the two-minute mark the song slows substantially and the repetative chants of "We're all here. We're all here and you won't get in our heads!" will have you singin' along in no time. A minute later the song comes apart at the seams and detonates with a flurry of seismic aftershocks, only to fall into a crack in Earth at 4:50 and disappear forever. Jeez that's one good record.

After ten years of evolving and honing, their newest effort is as sharp and emotionally draining as anything that was released in 2017. The band is currently writing new materiel that will hopefully be recorded later this year. Automatic Best Of 2018 expectations over here, my friends. 💘

Lastly, they have two shows coming up:
- April 21st DIY spot which is essentially their “home base” called the Malört Mansion
- May 18th in Elgin: and then another show at an art space (linked here)

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DISCOGRAPHY

2009 - The Codex cdrLP (stream/donate/download here)

2010 - Frustration Palace cdrLP (got it? post it!)
2010 - Macaroni Art 7"EP (stream/donate/download here)

2012 - Metaphors for the Decline of Humanity cassetteLP (stream/donate/download here)

2013 - -Channels- cdEP (stream/donate/download here)

2017 - Masses of Program (stream/donate/download here)

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(2017) CADENCE FOX - "Spearheaded" (from 'Masses of Program')

(2017) CADENCE FOX - "Projection" (from 'Masses of Program')

(2017) CADENCE FOX - "Aloka Kasina" (from 'Masses of Program')

(2013) CADENCE FOX - "Riker Ave." (from '-Channels-')

(2013) CADENCE FOX - "Harlow" (from '-Channels-')

(2012) CADENCE FOX - "Wilderness" (from 'Metaphors for the Decline of Humanity') official music video

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CADENCE FOX additional links
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