Band – Bitter Truth
Album – The Voice of the Unheard
Country of Origin – USA
Genre – Hardcore
Release Date – 19 June, 2020
Label – n/a, released by Consume Fanzine
Author – JGilbert
“Direct action hardcore from the heart of DeVos country”
My experience with Grand Rapids hardcore outfit Bitter Truth was just seeing their name at the bottom of flyers for shows I missed, until I came across The Voice of the Unheard on Bandcamp. With its compelling album photo and provocative title taken from a famous Dr Martin Luther King quote, I was instantly taken in for a closer look. I still hate to admit it, but with the insane amount of new content that comes across my radar every time I boot up my computer, I do end up judging the proverbial books by their covers.
The Voice of the Unheard is a three track EP with a cassette format available for pre-order, in case you’re a weirdo hipster like me and like that sort of thing. The songs are all what you would expect from Midwest metallic hardcore, but with the socio-political awareness turned up to ten. Chalk it up to a deeply personal connection to the issues, as it were, because as much as the evils of Bitter Truth’s society inspire people to feel anti-authoritarian sentiment in private, it’s another thing to attempt to express those views publicly in a meaningful fashion. On that note, all the proceeds from The Voice of The Unheard will go to the Michigan Solidarity Bail Fund Assistance program to benefit Michiganders who have had their rights violated by the police during the recent civil unrest. You can check out that cause and engage in a little direct action yourself here!
Bitter Truth’s new EP sounds like it would be right at home tearing up the Trumbullplex or the OG Sanctuary, with similarly passionate hardcore acts like Great Reversals and Empathy. The riffs are chunky and the grooves have a good momentum to them, but this kind of music is usually all about the lyrics and the emotion behind their composition and delivery. Unfortunately, with new SARS-CoV2 cases on the rise in forty states as I type this, it’s unlikely I’ll get a chance to see one of their acclaimed live shows anytime soon. I can throw them five dollars for a cassette and a donation to a worthy cause, though, and that feels almost as good.
Rating – 3/5
