Botch: We Are the Romans (reissue)

Botch’s We Are the Romans was originally released in 2000, and it stands out today as one of Hydra Head Records’ greatest releases. Hydra Head had staked out an image as the source for smart, arty hardcore, and Botch were a perfect fit for the label.

Technical and progressive without being tech metal, Botch employed huge, crushing breakdowns that were tangibly heavy without ever seeming gimmicky or stupid. They were a perfect amalgam of everything that was cool about “experimental” hardcore at the time without ever coming off as derivative.

Hardcore cliches are mostly absent on We Are the Romans — Botch do techy metalcore in a way that somehow sounds new and special. The tightly wound songs jump from riff to riff without ever losing focus, and the album follows an arc that sees technical speed gradually replaced with a slow brutality, ending with an acapella chant, one final massive riff, and a hidden drum and bass track.

Botch’s 2002 break-up was a major event. Despite having only released two full-length albums, the group’s departure from the hardcore landscape merited the release of a posthumous EP (the excellent An Anthology of Dead Ends) and a CD/DVD release of their final show.

Now Hydra Head has reissued their two studio albums, complete with a second disc of demos and live tracks. The bonus disc is an interesting relic for fans of the album, but like most pack-in bonuses, doesn’t merit more than a few spins. The main attraction here is the album itself. We Are the Romans still maintains its dominance over the rest of the Hydra Head catalogue and any pretenders to the metalcore throne, and is well worth the purchase.

- Patrick Hajduch

Botch: www.myspace.com/botch
Hydra Head: www.hydrahead.com