Drain is a Santa Cruz based hardcore band that made waves last summer with attention grabbing sets at both Sound And Fury and This Is Hardcore. The literal sound of waves and California beach soundscapes are what open up the band’s debut full length, California Cursed. A wildly heavy intro riff kicks off with crushing bass and frontman Sam Ciaramitaro dropping some Jamey Jasta style “blechhhs”. The ten tracks that comprise the record are often fast, in your face and straight to the point. Upbeat verse riffs assault your ears at breakneck speeds before transitioning to a mosh inducing breakdown. 


“Sick One” was the first released single and the track with the biggest selling point of what to expect on this record. The riffs are technical and reminiscent of something you’d hear on a Power Trip record. “Hollister Daydreamer” is an acoustic guitar driven interlude with Ride The Lightning-esque lead guitar dancing in the background, until slamming into the double kick drum chaos of “White Coat Syndrome”. 


Production was handled by Taylor Young (Nails, Twitching Tongues), who did a great job conveying the sound of buddies playing heavy music in a room. In my opinion, Drain is the soundtrack to “fun violence” if that makes any sense, check out videos of the aforementioned sets for some clarity.


Title track and album closer, “California Cursed”, is probably my favorite track on the record, as it balances the faster paced riffage with a d-beatish chorus that explodes into a halftime beatdown. I’d love to continue elaborating on this record, but I want to keep it short and straight to the point. Just like California Cursed, which is out TOMORROW via Revelation Records.