Fucked Up

Hidden World

[5/5] Toronto’s Fucked Up play punk rock and roll in the spirit of everything punk used to be. Like a grittier, scarier and more nuanced version of something by the Bronx, Hidden World uses aggression and bouncy melodies to channel the likes of Tom Waits, Black Flag and ’90s post-hardcore legends Cable; the result is a raucous and potentially intimidating barrage that reflects the rawest and filthiest realities of modern society in a way that’s more GG Allin than Earth Crisis. And while compelling elements of Fucked Up’s back-story have been well-documented-they have no website and not one member has a cell phone or even a driver’s license-neither material nor psychiatric limitations (lead vocalist Pink Eyes has schizophrenia and both guitarists suffer from depression) can keep Hidden World from being painfully authentic and sonically golden. As far as confrontational art goes, it doesn’t get much better than this. (JADE TREE) Ronen Kauffman