Slow Code are a punk trio out of Seattle that deal in a thrashing, no-holds-barred take on 90s post-hardcore that is simultaneously modern and reverential. After releasing an EP back in 2015 through Glory Kid LTD., they are back with a debut LP later this month and it’s called Wastelayer. We have the premiere of a new song from the LP, which is out May 25 on that same label and can be pre-ordered here.
Standing as the centerpiece of an absolute barnburner of an album, “No Grandchildren” shifts gears without warning. It starts with blistering uptempo verses and clean minimalist guitar-playing, moves to a gruffly-delivered but still-memorable chorus, adds in an atmospheric break, and if that wasn’t enough, close it all out with an instrumental-only postlude that has guitarist Charlie Wagner shredding through a series of riffs before drawing the song to its frenetic close.
“‘No Grandchildren’ is about watching the beginning of the end of the world, as all our existential structures begin to collapse and withdraw incrementally,” said the band about the song. “It’s about living within the brief moments of pure reality that impede on the apathetic decay we’re more often than not entrapped by.”
Wagner’s guitar playing is a master class in the techniques of 90s biggest post-hardcore bands like Fugazi and Unwound to more obscure groups like the Gravity Records and Level Plane sets. From the quickly arpeggiated guitar chords that represent a “break” from the action three minutes into the song to the thrashing conclusion that features near-blast-beats from drummer Josh Hill, this band has memorized The Great American Hardcore Songbook and delivers in spades on “No Grandchildren.” And when the guitars take a minimalist touch like during the opening minute, bassist Amy Peterson’s bass cuts through the mix to lead the song to its next passage with intuitive low-end guidance.
A look at the lyric sheet for “No Grandchildren” will leave the listener with just a slight touch of unease. Lyrics such as the opening salvo of “Grateful for the grief that’s helped to keep us all in touch so well up to this point” convey a bleak and cynical look at loss through a lens that may be difficult for many to admit is ultimately a most honest take. The lyrics for “No Grandchildren” get more metaphorical and less literal, but nonetheless retain their bleak affect:
“Grateful for the oil wells for pumping out the crude to burn off the earth to stew about and churn / Thankful for the trading off of optimism by our predecessors fuels / Grateful for the acceleration somehow providing diminishing returns / Thankful for the accusations of panic and fits which can’t help but beg the question where has joking gotten you.”
The album was recorded in Anacortes, WA with engineer Nich Wilbur. The recordings took place at an abandoned 20th century church known as The Unknown.
Wastelayer track list
1. “Access”
2. “Consumption-Based”
3. “Name Names”
4. “Destination Wedding”
5. “No Grandchildren”
6. “Put a Burden On It”
7. “Battlemage”
8. “Semiascetic”
9. “Shit Praxis”
10. “Flayed”
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