Having both seen Crime Light as much as possible and having been in bands with various members, I was extremely excited for this release.
It was well worth the wait, and after a hiatus, the Ohio hardcore outfit is back with their final EP.
The self-titled EP, on the whole, sounds as if you got 87’ Agnostic Front to have left-wing politics, fed them a steady diet of '80s Japanese Hardcore bands such as Bastard, showed them The Rival Mob somehow, and then told them to make a politically charged album.
Each song demonstrates how Crime Light has blended a wide range of influences and created something wholly their own. Throughout the album, guitar solos, catchy riffs, mosh parts, and gang vocal sections inspired by different styles of hardcore are woven together into aggressive songs that
pull no punches.
Lyrically, each song on the EP feels like a cry against an ever more dystopian world. It does not harken back to an imagined, more equitable past, but instead angrily shouts into the abyss of the society we live in today. In particular, the songs "Mold to Design," "World Burns Back," "Their Idols
Are Scum," and "Boiled in Their Tanks" showcase the angrily poetic lyrics of Crime Light.
This EP on its own is more than enough to solidify CrimeLight as a standout Ohio hardcore band, but to leave it there would be leaving out their legacy.
Crime Light has been instrumental in building up the hardcore scene here in Columbus. From helping younger folks start bands to amplifying queer, disabled, and POC voices, Crime Light, and its members were key to the Columbus hardcore scene growing into the welcoming place it is.
The band played their last show on February 8th, so if you missed them, the best you can do is listen to their album and watch their sets on YouTube.
Thankfully, 4 of the members of Crime Light have a new project coming up called Regalia, and their vocalist, JB, is involved with multiple other Columbus hardcore groups. While Crime Light is no longer a band, the impact that they had on Columbus’s hardcore community will be felt for years
to come.
Get It
- Delayed Gratification Records (cassette)
- Bandcamp (digital)
Tagged: crime light
