Meanwhile- Reality or Nothing (2008)
For a long time, I was convinced that Jallo (from Totalitär) could do no wrong: his bands Äaritila, Krigshot, and Meanwhile were among the best hardcore bands of the 2000s. However, I was not a fan of his new project Kvoteringen, and the most recent albums by Äaritila and Krigshot were unmemorable. But, there was still hope that Meanwhile would still carry the banner high. Sadly, this is not borne out by the lackluster Reality or Nothing. Furthermore, since its release coincided with the first-ever vinyl issue of Meanwhile’s 1996 cd-only Road to Hell, the disparity between old and new Meanwhile was fully evident.
Reviewing this kind of record is extremely difficult: what distinguishes a good Swedish HC song from a bad one is almost impossible to put in words, and often can only be judged by the cumulative effect of the whole record. Meanwhile don’t do anything different here than on their good records, but this “consistency” in superficial matters is a moot point: music is not a game of hedging one’s bets. The point is to grab the listener by the throat. It could be mathematically proved, perhaps, that Reality or Nothing is “the same” as Meanwhile’s previous successes, and in fact I don’t know where I would point for proof of my contention that it is not as good. But it simply isn’t. It’s boring. The production is bad, the songs are not catchy, and when it’s over, I don’t really know or care what just happened.
This all sounds rather vague, mystical, and undetectable—as if any evaluation of this music is mere guessing or based only on nostalgia—but if you hold this album up to the Disclose album Yesterday’s Fairytale Tomorrow’s Nightmare, the difference is like night and day. The new Meanwhile is manifestly sluggish, uninspired, and forgettable in comparison. [And that is not even to invoke other titans of this genre, like Totalitär, No Security, Disfear, Wolfpack, Skitkids, Anti-Cimex, Skitsystem, or Shitlickers.] In a world where this album was the only one of its kind, we surely would have to evaluate it differently, but in comparison to all the greats that have come before, it is easy to recommend passing it by.
This is especially disappointing, because the previous two 7”s, The Show Must Go On & Ghostface Democracy, were both excellent. Alas, I want this album to be excellent, too—hell, I want every record I buy to be an all-time classic—but this is not the case, and one would be advised to revisit prior triumphs like the Lawless Solidarity 10” or The Road to Hell (or recent Warcry releases!) for your Meanwhile fix.
