Never Enough

I first heard about this band in the summer of 2003. I was buying a 7" from a band on tour when their merch guy told me about his band, Never Enough. He said they were a cross between Negative Approach and American Nightmare. He gave me a demo CD-R. Never Enough was just the sort of thing I wanted to hear. They sounded PISSED! It was fast and in your face. The NA/AN comparison was right on for sure. On the lyric sheet was a request from one member for someone to sell him a copy of Swervedriver's "Raise" LP, as he had sold his to record the demo. Never Enough was my kind of band, for sure. Sadly, I heard quite recently that they're calling it quits.

"Dead Set on Destruction" is a 27 track CD that documents this bands demo, 7", a live set and six new tracks. The music is straight forward fast hardcore punk. They turn the volume and negativity to eleven. The guitar tones sound like an attack by a swarm of buzz saws. The vocals sound gruff and furious. The drums are manic and blasting. I wish I could hear the low-end better. The bass and kick drums are a little quieter than I would prefer. The lyrics take a realistic look at life in hardcore instead of the idealistic mentality that we're all used to hearing from typical na've bands. These guys are older than your average band. They have been able to hang on to the lifestyle as they see other (younger) kids come and go. Their lyrics are a reflection of the impact that punk has made on them. While most straightedge bands have a tendency to talk about the concept on a 2nd grade level (cough!' Embrace Today' cough!), Never Enough looks at the lifestyle on a pragmatic level.

If you're into bands like Cro-Mags, Kill Your Idols, The Oath and Right Brigade, you need to check out Never Enough. The live set has a cover of "Just to Get Away" by Poison Idea and "Bloodstains" by Agent Orange, two bands that don't get enough attention. I really hope the members of Never Enough continue making music, because there has been a severe drought in hardcore for good bands that actually think about life in a practical sense. These guys do it right.

8.0 / 10 — PJ