The Human Race Is Filth: A Call to Action

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Pennsylvanian duo The Human Race Is Filth’s (THRIF) second EP Liberate works in two very connected ways. One: the quick and punishing record is raw and vibrant, showcasing the band’s brainy recording philosophy. Two: this in turn mirrors the group’s ideological bent, one that emphasizes standing up to a corrupt and ugly society. These two methods blend together to create a strong movement: a jolt to the senses. This is an extreme band with a deep desire to make a positive impact. And they do, because their music allows their total vision to materialize.

“This band is our release: this is where we speak, this is where it all comes out,” members Paul and Kasey relay. “Music is our delivery system, and hopefully one day we can change some minds and have a positive impact somewhere.”

The Liberate EP acts as an extension of the band’s debut EP Human Exposed with its transmutation of grind, sandpaper doom, and heavy political leanings. The eight songs generate a pure direction, a madness that feels natural and spur-of-the-moment. Turns out, that’s close to the truth. THRIF is almost like free jazz in its recording methodology.

“The process for us is simple and basic,” they say. “We do everything in a day, we don’t want it spread out more than one day, we want to capture the zone and vibe we have going so we just push ’til it’s all done. We book time with no material written. We write some outlines of songs in which we have patterns and ideas flowing but never really put them in stone till we record, so the riffs are altered and song structures changed when that record button is hit.”

Songs like “Vein Full” and “Hung By Illusion” numb you to the core, grinding out in spiral patterns. You can hear the spontaneous decisions the band makes to move here, or move there, and they do so confidently. On a song like “Slow March” the group uses this momentum to sway you inward, creating an demon rocking chair to fester in. The song is the longest on the EP, tripping with echo and pain. Again, the music elevates the song’s message. Creating an aural landscape to match its literary and visual hope; and on this song it’s a big one: an oft times forgotten and mindless tragedy.

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The song’s about a justice system and system of authority putting minorities away that are innocent of any wrongdoing. Because the authorities want to calm and please the public by arresting someone – anyone – and don’t give a shit about being innocent or guilty. They will arrest, charge, and convict an innocent person; and almost always that person is a minority and unable to defend against any prosecutor or convince a jury of their innocence. Forced confessions, cruel treatment, and an utter disregard for any truth. It’s been going on forever. It’s about making the public who vote these authorities into office and keep their pockets fat, feel safe. “Slow March” is about that walk you take to prison when you were just convicted and sentenced to life in jail or death and you know you’re innocent. So many innocent people have been released, but only after spending half their lives paying for a crime they didn’t commit.

In the grand scheme of things, bands that champion political and social causes (or at least publicly speak out against injustice and other bullshit) typically appear more transparent in their earthen shape than non-political and social bands. This earthen body then moves through life with more weight and more light. Over time, this shape becomes permanent. Bands like The Minutemen, Fugazi, and The Clash have shadows that stretch long and far. You wouldn’t be alone in finding yourself after three decades, searching for Repeater way more often than Seasons in the Abyss. THRIF are working in similar Repeater territory. Their music is sonically different than Fugazi, but the profound want for change is parallel. And this is usually what makes a piece of artwork stronger and last longer: the true intention behind it, its goals and total honesty.

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The fact is, the human race is a disease, the toughest cancer the earth has ever had and could ever have. We destroy everything in the name of greed and convenience. We are lazy and do not worry about what negative actions happen when we do something. We breed faster than most animals and are consistently clearing the land of its resources to make room and attempt to survive. If we want something from other humans considered “uncivilized” we just kill them. Take a look at the indigenous populations in Brazil for example: eventually they will be killed and their young forced to submit and conform to the general population’s rules of living. Sound familiar? Luckily, Brazil’s government is still trying to leave them at peace, but quickly we’re invading on their lands and contacts are occurring far too often. Remember early America where the original people of the land were just killed for the land and the resources – in the name of religion of course, which is just another name for greed. I can rant on and on of how the human race is filth but I won’t at the moment, we’ll just continue to write about it in our music.

So crank Liberate, which comes out April 6th, self-released on cassette and CD, and hear the sound of change vibrating your inner-core. It’s a quick wallop of crust and action, sparked by two dudes who are fully invested. The recording is wake up call of sorts. Designed to bridge the divide between tranquility and purpose.

“It is totally a call to action,” THRIF says. “We hope the listener can feel the passion we have for what we believe in and hopefully open some eyes to the world around them.”

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