Is it too elitist of myself to be somewhat irked that bands don't follow naming conventions as I perceive them? The name Total Vomit Experience would be something I would of associated with the "false grind" sub genres, yet with Total Vomit Experience (the band, not that party and subsequent aftermath when in a drunken stupor you considered Pernod to be a good mixer with Sainsburys basic Vodka) nothing could be further from the prejudice I associated with the name.
The band are so entrenched in old school grind purity one could very well think that the band jumped straight into a recording studio after being released from the cryogenic chamber dated 1992, still clutching an original pressing of Harmony Corruption and a bootleg tape of World Downfall. Their three tracks of boisterous, energetic and hard hitting grind is a chop shop splicing of Napalm Death, Terrorizer and prangs of Brutal Truth, welded together under the fierce heat born of their scorched earth policy in grind rampancy.
It’s less about imitation and more about co-operation, blending the various strong points of each influence in a conductively pro-active and decisive manner; a formidable task yet one executed with a great deal of finesse. It presents itself close to what one could hypothesise what the “average” of the early Earache Back-catalogue would be (before they began chasing any niche music form that could yield a profit). Although not entirely comparable and not quite in the same league of success, I don’t think it would be erroneous to suggest that on a stylistic level and input phase their approach is somewhat similar to Insect Warfare; bring the old school together in one vanguard and belt it out as fiercely and fast as possible, a task TVE deliver with a great deal of success.
Kashmar are on a completely different spectrum, and have firmly reminded me that music does not only consist of blast beats, down tuned riff’s and vocal bursts of rage; all of which must be employed at speeds formerly believed only to be attainable by machines. That being said I think I will crawl back to my musical comfort zone, not to throw around insults, but Kashmar although possessing a better name than Total Vomit Experience aren’t really my go to when it comes to music. I think it best to avoid any conclusion as to genre, likeability, pay style etc as an uneducated assessment is not a fair one, not to mention the element of personal bias, however I will give credit where credit is due and the edgy unravelling of the song is quite the experience, but whoever thought it was a good idea to utilise a bark as progressive vocal input needs to be sent back to MTV.
It feels somewhat awkward with the pairing of two such distinctively different bands, especially one that feels so intimately familiar and one I confess I can draw no point of reference to. However sticking with what I know I will say this much: Total Vomit Experience is the White Russian of the grindcore world, its independent elements common place, tried and tested yet when placed together, are done in such a fantastical way you are left yearning for more.
