Screaming Giant Records is throwing around the term 'Heavy-Core' in reference to this band. To be honest it's pretty hard to accurately pigeonhole this music of this band. If I had to come up with something the best I could do would be a cross between the older band Everdown, Solid State's Luti-Kriss, and round it out with some These 5 Down in the mellower parts.
As the band themselves refuse to classify themselves (See the interview put online 5-2-01) they leave themselves open to this sort of comparison like it or not! However they do give us clue calling their music 'heavy.' I think SGR just wanted to work the word 'core' into it somehow.
What we have from them is an album called Stare a follow up to their self produced CD EP The Trouble With Me. This CD is 13 tracks and just over 48 minutes of music. Musically they do a lot of the mellow and undistorted verses, kicking the intensity up on the choruses. The music is overall...sigh I'm going to say it...freaking heavy. It's never fast they are a slow to mid-paced band and create some level of chaos even at that pace. This is mainly due to the screams of the vocalist who does tend to remind me a great deal of Luti-Kriss at those moments.
The drumming stands out a good bit to me. I've noticed on many of the tracks that there are some really interesting parts mixed in among his off timing playing. The bass lines are huge on this CD mixed pretty high, not that this is bad in any sense of the meaning, on the contrary. The bass simply pummels you throughout the heavy parts of this album.
Screaming Giant grabbed ahold of Cope, then The CafFiends, and now with Hospital they really have rounded out their roster with some heavy hitting bands. No longer is this simply a punk/hardcore label. If you haven't heard this CD yet, it's definitely worth your time to trek down to your local Christian bookstore and at least listen to the demo. For fans of Luti-Kriss, Mindrage, or Zao, although some of the mellow pieces may seem a bit different to you, I think you'll find them growing on you because the dark brooding approach used in them.
8.5/10
Other coverage for this album
Dead Zine 2001Reviewed by the ProjectWOWSERS!!! Hospital is insane! Stare by Hospital is a totally mental ride. This band is loud and crazy from start to end. I liked it a bit but it really wasn't my style. I am not saying this band is bad, no way. They are just too nuts for me. Hospital is a Hardcore/Speed band. They are not a double bass speed metal band you may be thinking of, but a band with intense aggression and crazy eerie…HM Magazine #86Reviewed by Doug Van PeltFormerly known as Rachel's Mourning, their rapcore-influenced music has improved 200%. The calm, Tool-like verses are bludgeoned with chaotic screaming choruses. Hats off to producer Scottie Hoaglan (Nailed).Similar sounding releases
2000Project 86Drawing Black Lines
2001Brain:FAQBrainstorming
2005Mercury SwitchTime to Shine
2005UnearthOur Days of Eulogy
2000SeotaijiSeotaiji VI
2003ZaoLegendary
