Pennsylvania grind trio Collaped Skull released their first album, Eternity Maze, in 2022, catching a few eyes and ears—including a set at the Metal & Beer Fest: Philly pre-show that same year—but mostly flying under the radar. The trio have been occupied with other projects Full of Hell and Jarhead Fertilizer since then but Collapsed Skull just dropped their second album and it’s the grind record you need to hear in 2024.
Titled Your Father’s Rage Evaporated in the Sun, the album pushes through 22 songs in just over 30 minutes, combining lively hip-hop samples with abrasive grindcore and powerviolence songs. Vocalist Dylan Walker is on fire throughout the album, going from throat-shredding screams to death metal growls. The many samples and soundbites break up the bass-and-drums grind courtesy of his bandmates Brandon Brown and Jordan Skipper, never letting the album settle too far into a pattern before breaking it up with a spot of harsh noise or Noam Chomsky sample.
For as musically abrasive and scattered as Your Father’s Rage Evaporated in the Sun sounds, it has moments of real catchiness too, like on second-half banger “Totalitarian.” The trio also further explored their hip-hop influences with Truth Serum, a mixtape produced by the band featuring various underground rappers. While it’s more of a side quest than a necessary listen to understand the Pennsylvania grinders, it’s a welcome other side to one of the year’s best grind releases.
Your Father’s Rage Evaporated in the Sun and Truth Serum are available now via Closed Casket.