Review by Kayla Hamilton (@kaylazomboid)

When Thai hardcore act Whispers signed to Flatspot Records, I could not be more hyped for this band. Watching their rise has been nothing short of phenomenal, so when they announced the release of this EP, Yom-Ma-Lok, I just knew we were in for a treat.

So let’s jump in.

Opening with an ominous riff, it creates the very vibe that the title, ‘Bangkok Evilcore’ promises. The bands moniker and self-described style of music, if this is your first time listening to Whispers, you are in for a treat. As it builds into the track, we are quickly introduced to the subtle groove that is ever present in Whispers music. A wave of heavy crashing over you with, guided by a clean guitar riff- this introductory track is the ultimate opener. With a simple mosh call, you can already feel the energy in which their music embodies.

As expected, it only picks up from here on out. ‘A Choice To Survive’ is a straight to the point, throw it all down track. It is venomous in its vocal delivery, in true Mike fashion. With classic hardcore riffs that just hit you right in the gut, Es behind the kit is a true driving force. An absolute demon on the double kick, so strong that it is almost giving heart palpitations. The vocal feature by Jem from SPEED is the icing on the cake (along with those beautiful guitar squeals).

Whispers music is somehow able to marry anger and groove, in a way that makes you want to punch somebody with a smile on your face. ‘Retribution’ is the perfect example of this. There is just something that makes you want to yell along to this track, but it goes beyond a typical hardcore track. It never loses the essence of hardcore- in fact, the thrash elements that are present in the underlying bass and guitar riffs really take hardcore back to where heavy music transcended from punk. It is venomous in nature, furious in its soul and fun in its delivery. That is probably a reason this one of the released singles. Overall, a solid track as a stand-alone, but amongst the EP it hits even harder.

Speaking of hitting hard, ‘Close Your Eyes’ kicks it up a notch even higher than you thought it could go. Real circle pit energy, again, it has that thrash infusion and that china in the drums scratches the ear in all the best ways. Get is really the spine of this track, with solid basslines that seem to have the rest of the track built around it, adding a beefiness to the full on assault that ‘Close Your Eyes’ delivers.

On ‘This Is Not The End’ though, it is Ole and Neung on guitars that are the stars of this track. Hellacious riffs and some masterful shredding, it dabbles into that old school ‘00’s metalcore vibes. Screw going low and slow though, this track just keeps getting faster and faster right up until the breakdown.

The latest single Wisenheimer, featuring Shaun Alexander of Demonstration Of Power on guest vocals. One of the strongest songs on the EP, from the opening line, “Talk that shit when I come for you, I wanna know what the fuck you gonna do”- it is just straight up and right in your face. There is an unbridled aggression that powers this track, and there is a rabidness in the vocals that convinces me that Mike means every single word he is saying.  With the phrase “You were never one of us” delivered with such a startling and obvious rage, it’s a throwdown that goes right to the soul.

Finishing off with the title track Yom-Ma-Lok, meaning “world of death/underworld” in Thai, it fits right in with the evilcore moniker. The haunting whispers, no pun intended, that turn into the straight up visceral yells are spine tingling. Stephen Bessac from Kickback makes his presence felt. The low, slow and gloomy outro to the EP returns us back to that ominous introduction, rounding out what feels like a full circle of journey.

As somebody who has been following this band loosely for a while now, I was intrigued by how they would set themselves apart in a world where hardcore is gaining notoriety. There are so many strong players in the overall hardcore scene and being from a region where the talent is often overlooked- it was always going to be an uphill battle for them to get the recognition they deserve.

But this EP is a bold statement. It is a defining moment in this band’s career and will almost certainly put them on a trajectory to be the next big name in hardcore. They are already winning audiences over with their insane live shows- now they have the recorded material to back it up.

Rating: 10/10
Yom-Ma-Lok is out now. Find all things WHISPERS here.