Formed in Boston in 2005 by refugees from Milligram (quick shot of Darryl) and Lamont (black & white photo of Jase), Hackman exploded onto the world stage with the release of their debut full-length "The New Normal" in 2007, which garnered praise far and wide, eventually ending up on year-end "best-of" lists, including Best Song Title for "Fuck You, I played Altamont" (420 Trainwreck). After acquiring a new drummer (video clip of Owen), how was Hackman to follow up "The New Normal"? By recording "Enterprises" with producer in excelsis Andrew Schneider (Unsane, Pelican, Scissorfight, etc.) at his studio Translator Audio in scenic Brooklyn, New York of course. Staying the course of carving out heavy riffs with minimal vocals, Hackman wrote and recorded 10 new songs, recording to 2" tape and utilizing multiple tunings. Is it instrumental? Not really. Well, why don't Hackman have more vocals? Because they don't have much to say, and words just don't do justice to what there is to communicate. Only crushing riffs and pounding drums, feedback and repetition, can do the job properly. As the French said about Hackman, "obviously the devastation is considerable". Yes, the devastation is indeed considerable. Hackman made sure of that by adding a second guitar player, Seth Farrell, to augment their already generous sound. Check out "Enterprises" (shot of cover) and drop out.
a couple of reviews
Hackman's new album starts you off with a 4+ minute stomping, grooving, heavy-as-fuck instrumental, dominating all, and setting the tone for the entire album. Crushing, miserable, mostly instrumental, doom. Mmmmmmmmmm. Can I get some Karma To Burn with a side order of Neurosis? It's hard to face, but this newest offering from Hackman just may be even better than their debut. This time around they had producer Andrew Schneider at the helm, and it's a surprisingly thick and heavy sound for the trio. This album is perfect for a cold, dark, winter in the Northeast. Hackman, yet another local band to watch out for.holy shit, does New England have a doom scene? Ooohhhh, it just might.-Wolfie,www.absolutmetal.com
What is the one thing that we like about heavy music? The answer is
easy: The Riff. New England's Hackman truly shares our sentiment and
has decided to strip down everything else that comes in the way. If you
always expect riffs in your music to have vocals and lead instruments
to take its essence and steal the show, this clearly isn't for you. If
on the other hand, you're the type that's already pretty damn kicked
about this Karma to Burn reunion, you definitely must give these goons
a shot.
With guitars and rare vocals supplied by Darryl Shepard from the
awesome Milligram and Roadsaw, and a superlative rhythm section made up
of bassist Jase and drummer Owen, these guys on their second album have
achieved more than most other stripped down two/three piece bands
could. Enterprises boasts of consistency, variety and working best
within the self-set limits with no signs of monotony. The
break-your-neck southern style uptempo grooves, the doom & gloom
vibe, the chilled out, lethargic approach to songwriting, and churning
out one catchy part after the other - it's all ingrained in your head
by the time you're through with a couple of listens.
The band can do straightup songs just like anyone else in the business,
but they frankly peak with something like March into Victory, stretched
over 10 minutes this is a more atmospheric, epic and more dynamic and
doom-fueled take on things and elevates this band into achieving pure
tonal and sonic perfection. Diversity seems to be the general idea
here, and there are acoustic arpeggiated passages like the interlude
track End of Men to give the listener a breather before the next heavy
motherfucker comes in and tears a new one. This is a very solid album
from Hackman full of heavy fuzzed-out guitars, distorted rumbling bass
and big hitting drums showcasing the power of The Riff. Especially
watch out for the bonus guitar-and-bass track hidden right at the end,
once the last song War Gong gets over. This kills.
- Srikanth Panaman
March 16th, 2009
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