Brut - Footsteps Album

Brut is a Swiss band started at least as early as 2010.
Unfortunately I couldn't find any other information about them as part of the research in preparation for the review, so I'm just gonna go ahead and assume that the name stands for Brutally Raging Uncompromising Tracks!

Musically they play 90's Metallic Hardcore, and while not usually my cup of tea, the tracks do seem to have what it takes to keep you hooked from start to finish.
I'm not sure if it's the direct uncompromising execution of the instruments, the meaningfulness of the thoughts conveyed, or the anger and despair of the vocals, but yes, for me Brut did deliver.

The only thing I'm not too crazy about is the aforementioned vocals.
It seems the girl is in terrible agony and really straining her voice, and I just wanted her to stop.
But that is just a personal opinion, all in all the vocals are very fitting for the musical style and are a great complement for the music.

So, while I didn't find my required melodic hooks to really get into the "music", what attracted me most about this double EP was the actual ideas being communicated.

The lyrics deal with personal and social matters, and are very deep and meaningful for the most part.
They speak of the personal struggle of having to accept the conformism imposed by society, of doing the exact opposite of what is expected regardless if good of bad in order to gain the feeling of escaping even temporarily the prison of the mind.
They deal with depression and negative attitude, but also prompt for a positive attitude.
They condone apathy and violence and promote tolerance, diversity and unity.

I found on this release not your usual straight forward protest songs but some serious thought provoking soul searching and meaning analyzing ideas with a personal favorite being "Red Footsteps" in which I'm sure different people will find different personal meanings.

This is Strongly Opposed Records' final release and they are indeed going out in style. They are taking a chance by releasing a record not up their usually alley, but that may pleasantly surprise a folk or two!

I'm not sure why this wasn't an LP or 10" as it's clearly an Album, but I'm really glad they opted for a double 7" EP.
The beautiful simple gate-fold cover is very well put together and does a very good job of making this a complete release. I found the text a little too hard to read though.

In conclusion this is not something I would usually pick up, but I'm glad I was given the chance to discover it and I'm surprised to find my musical tastes and ideas challenged, and if reaching out to more than the "usual crowd" was one of the purposes of this release, they can rest assured it was accomplished at least once!
If I came to appreciate this without having a particular interest in the genre, I'm sure people into this sort of thing will definitely love this release!