There is a school of hardcore that refuses all inflation: that of brevity, of the clean strike, of the record that says everything in a quarter of an hour. Gel, the New Jersey band led by singer Sami Kaiser, belong to it fully. Only Constant, their debut album, packs into nineteen minutes a discharge of energy that grants no respite — a manifesto more than a feature.
The critics (an 82 average across seven reviews) hailed the freshness and sincerity of a record that reconnects with the original spirit of hardcore: fast, direct, uncompromising. Gel seek neither sophistication nor melody but immediate impact, physical catharsis. Kaiser’s voice, snarling and inhabited, embodies a rage that seems to spring from an inner necessity.
Musically, the record charges at full tilt, punctuated by pulverising breakdowns, abrasive riffs and a few industrial textures that dirty the formula. This avowed brutality comes with a purpose: Gel make hardcore a space of community and inclusion, a refuge for the margins.
The counterpart of this radicalism lies in its very brevity: Only Constant passes so fast that it sometimes leaves one wanting, and one may regret that the band do not further explore the tracks they sketch. The record is a dazzling promise more than a definitive accomplishment.
Verdict: 8/10. A brief, ferocious, sincere record, reminding us that hardcore need not last to leave a mark. One to watch closely.
