Madball

“God save me from my past and present sins,” growls Freddy Cricien (rhymes with Christian) on the Kings of New York Hardcore’s latest aggro epistle, “Heaven – Hell.” Past sins include being an offshoot of a band you may have heard of called Agnostic Front, releasing albums that clock in under a half-hour, and recording a cover version of the Animals’ “It’s My Life” without learning the song. Present sins include making fans wait five years for a follow-up to Hold It Down, a pre-9/11 collection with the World Trade Center prophetically and eerily missing from its New York skyline cover. Despite Freddy’s finding his faith, Legacy ain’t all-out Christian hardcore, but more a thinking man’s browbeat music, one that still has enough blood-boiling tough-guy posturing and pummeling (“For My Enemies”), yet still has space for diplomacy (“Adapt and Overcome”). Excuse me, “Adapt and Overcome”? Grrrwwwaaa!