Pro-Pain – Shreds of Dignity

In the first Pro-Pain review I ever wrote, I posed the question, “Why aren’t Pro-Pain the biggest band in metal today?” That was in a review I wrote for their sixth album, Round 6. I stand here before you today, listening to Pro-Pain’s seventh album (entitled Shreds of Dignity), asking the same question. Why isn’t Pro-Pain the biggest band in metal today?

Shreds Of Dignity, for lack of a better joke, shreds. If Round 6 barrelled along at 90 miles per hour, Shreds Of Dignity kicks it up to a hundred. This album is definitely faster and meaner than their previous release. In true Pro-Pain fashion, the first track (“The Shape Of Things To Come”) blasts into full speed right from the beginning, and the album rarely, if ever, slows down. Occasionally you’ll hear a guitar solo or a bridge into the chorus, but for the most part this is stripped down, no frills, straight forward hardcore.

The faster and more aggressive the music gets, the less melodic it becomes. Shreds Of Dignity suffers slightly in this area, as the band has traded in some of their classic hooks and riffs for straight out pummeling. On their website, the band describes their latest release as an “all out assault on the ears via 12 tracks of sheer sonic brutality.” No sir, can’t argue with that. I’m not sure how much more brutal Pro-Pain could get, unless they began packing a slip of paper with each CD that asks the listener to punch themselves in the face repeatedly while listening to the CD. That would be more aggressive — but not by much.

10 years and 7 studio albums later, Pro-Pain is still here refusing to go away. Using do-it-yourself techniques (the band recorded, produced, and engineered their latest album) and maintaining their workaholic attitude and desire to win, Pro-Pain shows no signs of slowing anytime soon. Recommended for all fans of New York hardcore.

Tracks:
01. The Shape Of Things To Come
02. Gone Fishin’
03. Down For The Cause
04. No Way Out
05. Shreds Of Dignity
06. Walk Away
07. F.O.A.D.
08. Lock N’ Load
09. Casualties Of War
10. 24-7
11. Justice Must Be Done

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