Reviews: Striving Higher: Striving Higher
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Jersey Beat (http://www.JerseyBeat.com)
Striving Higher provide ten blistering tracks in a scant eighteen minutes, proving that these guys mean business. Clearly looking to the past to inspire the future, the dual guitar players Joost van Gisbergen and Paul Wijnen envelop the throat scorching vocals of Daan Schaars in a style of playing that harkens back to the days of Judge or Youth of Today. Rather than simply paying homage to the classics, Striving Higher inject a sense of fluidity and modernized technical skill to create a disc that is both engaging and fresh. The tightrope between "old school" plagiarism and simply being inspired by legendary acts is a delicate one to walk, which makes efforts like "We Shouldn't" "Hold On" and the thirty-second blast of "The Future is Bright" so impressive. Charismatic, intelligent and shockingly melodic, Striving Higher is an excellent new voice in hardcore.
Scanner (http://www.scannerzine.com)
Jesus H Christ! I bet these 5 fellas from the Netherlands are incendiary live! The 10 tracks on this disc fly past in less than 19 minutes with barely a pause for breath in between. As for the style, well, it's not really the NYHC stated by the press blurb. Imagine the finest and fiercest slab of Euro hyper HC played with the lacerating intensity of early ARTICLES OF FAITH and given a bang-up-to-the-minute vibe via GRADE-esque dynamics and PROPAGANDHI direction. Yep, it IS that good. Highlights include the sub-one-minute 'Believing', the pummelling riffage of 'It's Good To Look Back', the tortured thrash of 'Sometimes' and the closing cruise of power that is 'And You Must Know'. Lyrically, it's a negative and pessimistic outlook at the future of the human race mixed with the tried and tested HC staples. The breakdowns hit with the force of a car crash without resorting to crap Metallisms. All in all, a fantastic slab of noxious HC.
Rock radio (http://www.rock3.co.uk/rock3radio)
"Aggressive punks demanding their rights and willing to die for it". Striving Higher revs up with a call to arms with 'freedom lies inside' an explosive song demanding an end to the old ways. This EP carries on throughout, urging sacrifice in the fight for equality, fairness and an end to the system of elitism for the rise of humanity. Ten tracks of spitting, no compromise punk with a message, fuelled by some frantic drumming and some punishing guitars.
Inside Knowledge (http://www.insideknowledge.net)
I am never saying I know all about the hardcore scene as a whole, but I used to be pretty proud about the fact I thought I knew about all that was going one within the relatively small hardcore scene of the Netherlands. I thought wrong my friends.. Just out of the blue I got the first Striving Higher album lying in front of me. The ep ".At Caelum Certe Patet" the band released on their own made quite a few spins around here as I liked that blend of old school hardcore with some catchy punkrock. The guitars are doing the right thing again and Daan's vocals are as sharp as old school vocals can get. They have indeed developed their sound, although I do think the production is kept a bit to dry as this band has more layers than what we are used to. In a great song like "It's Good To Look Back", there's this amazing rocking undercurrent going on, which Gorilla Biscuits used to have back in the days, that doesn't totally blow me away due to lack of power. Now don't let the ramblings of an old man withhold you from getting this cd as that is just some technical aspect. The general feeling is just great and the aggression and joy of playing come from the hearts. I hope they continue to strive higher as I'm confident their ceiling has not yet been met.
Metal Pigeon (http://www.metalpigeon.com)
Woah! I didn't realise it was 1988 again. Striving Higher are purely on the old school hardcore tip. Striving Higher have a message to get out, whether it's by screaming, kicking, or breaking down anything that may lay infront of them. This band of Dutch hardcore fanatics have come up with this second full length, out now on Engineer Records. It's your basic Youth of today/Warzone/Agnostic Front mix they've got going on here, but they manage to pull it off well and play tighter than alot of punk bands about, so bonus points for that.
Most hardcore fans will have gathered from this review so far what to expect. Sing along vocals mixed with youth crew athleticism and full to bursting with messages of self revolution and disgust with the world we live in.
It's a perfectly timed affair- coming in at just under 20 minutes of cut throat speed hardcore. Vocalist Daan is the most abstract part of the puzzle to this band- mixing up some bizarre (but very, very good) Cappo/Choke style. It's just that little bit more throaty, and intense, than alot of bands playing this style would try to go with which in turn makes this release seem just a bit more interesting.
Alot of the naysayers will be asking about the point of a record like this- it's all been done before, many many times before, it's getting old. But Striving Higher play with a passion and fire inside their bellys that demands the listeners attention. You may not like the music, but you can sure as understand the point they're trying to get across. If this was released over 20 years ago it'd be at the forefront of hardcore music. But it's not, sadly.
Inside Knowledge
What I definitely like most about this Dutch old school band are the melodies. As we all know every possible old school tune has been regurgitated at least ten times. I have the greatest respect for bands that try to stick to the roots of modern hardcore, and still manage to get some new ingredients in it. Striving Higher, did just that, sheer old school power comparable to more modern bands like Mainstrike and Eyeball, get mixed up with influences of the US old school of hardcore (like Gorilla Biscuits), but most important the bands stands out by a punkrock, or even rock n roll way of playing their tracks. Sounds new and fresh, and they have carefully watched how a band like Bane has evolved. And with Menno of the Bunt Studio at the recording equipment thing worked out fine. It is a new band, and they deserve to be heard. And if singer Daan can get just that extra bit of power in his vocals they will become and important force of Dutch hardcore.
