Brainworms

Brainworms hail from Richmond, VA, a city with a rich hardcore/punk history. So it’s not a surprise that the members of Brainworms have made waves with several other bands. Which is Worse combines up the band’s original demo and cassette only release Is it Weird?

Musically, Brainworms is teetering on the line between hardcore and indie rock, so I guess you could call them a post-hardcore band, but even that is a little off. They play hardcore punk that reminds me a bit of the Dischord roster, but with just a tad more intensity and ferocity. Lyrically, vocalist Greg Butler is the difference between Brainworms and “just some band.” A good example is the lyrics of “Heart Shaped Hickey:”

Being punk never changed anything / There’s no action inside this vacuum / Don’t be confused were not a counter culture / We’re just another fucking social clique.

Rorschach may be onto something good with Brainworms. Now that we’ve got the history lesson for the band with this release, it’d be nice to hear a new full-length of material.

7.0 / 10 — Michael