Review / 200 Words Or Less
Toronto
Under Siege

Dying Victims Productions (2020) Mirza

Toronto – Under Siege cover artwork
Toronto – Under Siege — Dying Victims Productions, 2020

From the ashes of the sorely missed, contemporary but old school death merchants Morbus Chron rises an altogether different phoenix. From 80s style Death-and-Entombed death metal we get the same decade as a frame of reference, but this time we’re talking some fist-pumping New Wave of British Heavy Metal infused with speed metal and more than a smidgen of hardcore.

This is the band’s debut mini-album and follows the five song EP Nocturnal High from 2018. So how does this sound then? Well, the bass player, one of the founders and also one of the guys from Morbus Chron, goes under the moniker 79-83. This, I presume is a reference to when heavy music was at its peak. I won’t argue with that, especially if Tøronto are anything to go by. It’s anthemic, it’s catchy and hell, even the riffs are hummable.

This kind of music is just something you feel, not analyze too much. So I’m gonna stop typing now and crack open a cold beer and listen to Under Siege while patching my denim jacket. I’m only gonna patch it with 79-83 bands too.

8.0 / 10Mirza • October 5, 2020

Toronto – Under Siege cover artwork
Toronto – Under Siege — Dying Victims Productions, 2020

Related features

Riot Fest Toronto 2014

Music • September 29, 2014

Related news

Tokyo Police Club final Toronto date

Posted in Splits on January 27, 2024

Riot Fest Toronto 2015

Posted in Shows on May 30, 2015

Toronto Nirvana tribute

Posted in Records on October 27, 2013

Recently-posted album reviews

Nicole Alexis

Mirrors & Smoke
Independent (2026)

There’s a fine line between stripped down music and so stripped back that is sounds empty. On Mirrors and Smoke, Nicole Alexis lands comfortably on the right side of that line, delivering a debut EP that leans into simplicity without losing its emotional weight. Built around acoustic arrangements and minimal production, the EP feels intentionally close. It feels like these … Read more

The Remote Controls

Too Tough
Fail Harmonic Records, Mom’s Basement Records (2025)

There’s a certain kind of punk band that doesn’t overthink things. No reinvention, no genre-bending manifesto, just fast songs, big hooks, and enough attitude to carry it all. Indianapolis’ The Remote Controls lean hard into that tradition on Too Tough, a record that feels less like a statement and more like a well-earned victory lap. Built on a steady diet … Read more

Sahan Jayasuriya

Don’t Say Please: The Oral History of Die Kreuzen
Feral House (2026)

For those of us who spent the mid-to-late 1980s navigating basement community halls, churches, and loveable, armpit-smelling dive bars, the name Die Kreuzen was a permanent fixture on the punk rock radar. They were the sound of the Midwest underground --too fast for the goths to do their spooky Bela Lugosi "shoo the bats away" interpretive dance, too technical for … Read more