You don’t so much listen to the first compilation from Manor imprint Desolate Sounds as get pummeled by it. The cassette’s eight tracks begin in angular, quivering post-punk with the Bay Area’s Ötzi, slowly unraveling until it hits Austin chaos with local duo Toxic Water. “Transit Mass” feels quietly apocalyptic and brutal, a sludgy overlay burying vocals. Mujeres Podridas’ “Pesadillas” kicks up the pace, walloping and sinister with Dru Molina’s distorted, echoing vocals over crushing riffs. Hell Fury’s succinct frenzy lasts under two minutes, the hammering wrath and rasping, guttural hollering on “Take Everything” closing out the comp.

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This article appears in March 22 • 2019.

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