Mizery return with FEROCIOUS and heartfelt new ep
Death is taboo to some and to others it is not. It leaves us with an impact that sadly Mizery, a hardcore band from San Diego, has experienced. On December 10 of 2023 the band would announce that their brother, Cayle Sain, passed away. They were working on an album before his death. Before I talk about this EP want to show my condolences to his family, to his friends, and to the band. I am truly sorry for their loss.
On flatspot’s website when talking about the EP they stated: “Cayle had taken pre-production demos they had sent him and he tracked drums for them in a professional studio. With the help of producer Taylor Young (The Pit), the band was able to obtain these drum tracks and use them for what would become their self-titled EP.” So this album did the most important thing, which is having Cayle’s sound live on through their music.
Mizery's self-titled EP is 16 minutes long with six brand new songs. The EP may be short, but it is packed guitar solos, breakdowns and political lyrics, showing that through their pain they are back and ready to f—- shit up.
“Renegade Rhythm” is a great way to start this EP. I was expecting some loud fast beats, like how they started “Burn” from their debut EP , but to my surprise, it was a lovely guitar intro that reminded me of an 80s power ballad. At the 30 seconds mark, the rhythm guitar and José Lunas’s vocals kick in. Luna’s vocal style reminds me of Sonny Sandoval from P.O.D. Other than having a similar flow to Sandoval, Luna’s voice is loud even though he is not even yelling nor screaming. At around the 2 minutes mark, the track picks up the pace, which causes me to want to two-step and dance. The chorus throughout the song is such a vibe that I can see being played through a skate compilation. This was a wonderful song to start the EP with.
The second track is “99 to 1,” the guitars in this song are heavy and greedy, but the vibe is still playful. The bass is wonderful during the breakdown that plays at the 1:40 mark. It really does help a song make it feel so energetic. The lyrics of this song are so well written. My favorite lyric is: “Where there’s people there’s power. Where there’s power of the people there’s peace.” The song is great at spreading the message of banding together to fight the common enemy. I also want to talk about how great the production is, especially in this song. Taylor Young made this EP sound so clean, everything on this track is clear.
I’m going to put the next two songs together since the first part is a intro and the second is the actual song. “The Weapon” is an amazing intro due to Taylor Parker’s guitars. It’s gloomy and raw, and then transitions to “The Weapon II.” The first song that Mizery released in a very long time, “The Weapon II” was the best song to release as a single for this EP. It starts with heavy bass ,drums blasting into the song, followed by Miguel Salazar’s bass line. As it progresses, it gets faster and heavier, with the chorus allowing people to two-step. This is a song where I can see people flying from the stage. The music video for this track is just as powerful, especially with it ending on the frame of the drums set and the phrase: “R.I.P. Cayle Sain.”
“Through a Bullet Hole” is a song that really caught my attention. The tone they set in this song reminds me of Alice In Chains. If you told me this was from the 90’s grunge era I would’ve believed you. It’s so gritty and heavy, yet slow. It’s a wonderful song and one of my favorite songs at the moment. It’s simply heavy and slow pace makes an impact on this EP.
The last song on this EP is “Eulogy,” the perfect song to end this record. I know I said this earlier, but the songwriting on this EP is fantastic. The lyrics that start out with: “Lived and learned with no love in return. On our terms, we moved without concern. They discerned our future, rest it earns” stuck out to me. It showed how are mature the lyrics are and how powerful Luna’s writing is. The guitar riffs are heavy, the drums and bass line are groovy to start, then it gets faster and faster. Around the two minute mark, Sammy from Drain comes onto the track. His vocals are so natural, it feels like he was part of the band. This was the best choice to have this song end the EP.
Mizery took a step back to regain themself after their tragedy. Yet they came back swinging and knocked it right out of the park. Once again rest in power Cayle Sain.