France brings the noise to RPM who’d have thought it? Not really known for producing really popular bands it would be crass of me to suggest a whole country as big as France doesn’t have hardcore scenes especially a city the size of Paris but before today I couldn’t name a single one – well that has all changed with my introduction to Youth Avoiders. When the bosses at RPM sent me an assignment to uncover something they’d not heard before this was a no-brainer for me. From the moment the needle drops right through to the end of ‘Ohaguro’ they plow a hardcore furrow that is both fruitful and enjoyable. Their harvest is nothing short of tuneful breakneck hardcore ‘On The Run’ starts off proceedings and whilst it doesn’t have the history of say NYHC it certainly has quality running through it like a stick of seaside rock and Youth Avoiders are uncompromising and as brutal as anyone on the scene but they also have the songs which will set them aside from other noise bringers.
As the artwork alludes there is a dense black and white feel to the music as they capture the cold brutal yet melodic and welcoming punk rock. A band that has been around for some time have just gotten better as they have refined their sound and songs to a point where there is a steady progression every record and this ‘Relentless’ album being the pinnacle of their body of work thus far. I love the charm and melody of ‘Watch Me’ and ‘Street Violence’ is like a street fight caught and melted into plastic grooves it’s breathless and a musical punch after punch after kick.
The band has tirelessly toured this record and visited the UK as well as a lot further afield to show just how good Parisian Hardcore is and hopefully if there are others in their scene ready to make music as good as this then we welcome them. Every song on ‘Relentless’ is exactly that – relentless. A short sharp shock to the system that Hardcore is alive and kicking and with bands like Youth Avoiders playing and making music it will never die.
Author:Seb Boyd
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