Madball
Maintaining urgency, authenticity and integrity has never been an issue for New York Cityâs hardest, and hardest working band, Madball. Twenty-five years along as a recording and touring entity, MB brings forth its ninth aural chapter, For the Cause; a signature collection of lionhearted, groove-laden, street-level New York Hardcore as only Madball can bring it. The aptly titled album doesnât so much revisit where the group has been since 1994 - although Madball released its first EP, Ball of Destruction as a virtual Agnostic Front side-project back in 1989 - but forges forward and represents where the fellas find themselves collectively and personally a quarter-decade down the road. Throughout the bandâs storied history, Madball has asserted its mission; carrying forth a simple yet righteous cause, and this time around, theyâve chosen to define that cause more succinctly than ever before. Tornadic vocalist/front man Freddy Cricien explains, âIf youâre not fighting for a cause, youâre not participating in life. Simple as that. Speak up, fight, educate yourself, make a difference and make sacrifices for whatâs important to you.â Words to live by. For the Cause sees the return to the fold of guitarist Matt Henderson, who hasnât appeared on a Madball album since 2000âs Hold it Down, for which Henderson also served as producer. âTo have him record with us again was really specialâ offers Freddy. He adds, âMattâs been playing âcommemorativeâ shows and tours with us on-and-off over the years, so, obviously, the love and friendship is there. Heâll always be an honorary member⌠A Madball lifer.â Unique to this album is the stellar production work by Rancidâs Tim Armstrong, who clearly helped express Madballâs distinctive voice powerfully and dynamically without stepping on the trademark formula the band has forever carried, yet constantly seeks to improve upon. âItâs a tricky thing, producing. You can truly enhance something, but you could also ruin a record if a band lets youâ says Cricien. Freddy continues, âTim has always respected our band and how we do what we do. He knew we had a vision for how this album should sound, so he let us do our thing, but was there every step supporting and cheering us on. Whenever he did chime in, it was well thought out and he made strong suggestions. He even helped write the hook on âFor You.â He was there for us in a non-meddlesome role, which for this particular record, was the best-case scenario.â Danish studio veteran Tue Madsen (Meshuggah, Dark Tranquility, Sick of it All) skillfully handled mixing duties on For the Cause. Also, noteworthy on For the Cause are the various cameo appearances by some of Madballâs friends, as well as several artists with whom the group shares a mutual respect; namely Psycho Realmâs Sick Jacken on the track âRev Up,â The Businessâ Steve Whale and producer Armstrong on âThe Fog,â plus legendary emcee Ice-T on the hardcore banger âEvil Ways.â Freddy discloses, âJacken is our homie. He just came through to say whatâs up and check out the spot and I happened to be recording âRev up.â He was really digging the song and just freestyled. It really drove the message of the song home. As for Ice-T, he added a good flavor to âEvil Ways.â It was a real honor to work with someone Iâve been following and have respected since I was a kid. He genuinely supports our band and the scene we come from. Tim and Steve jumping on The Fogâ happened organically like everything else with this record.â The UK Oi! legend provided the spoken intro and a guitar lead to the street punk tinged anthem. Whatâs maybe most notable on For the Cause is its various twists and turns both musically and vocally to keep Madballâs brand of NYHC fresher than it has ever been. Freddy presents, âHow do you grow as a band or as a person if you donât take chances? We feel obligated to ourselves and everyone else to evolve, at least somewhat. We took more âchancesâ on this record than on any previous one, and weâre happy about that! Weâre proud that itâs still very much us; itâs real and honest. There is plenty on there to satisfy the people that support us from every era of this band.â As for Madballâs astounding longevity in the hardcore game: âWe donât know how to do anything else at this point. We raise our families to the best of our ability; we do Madball to the best of our ability⌠So far so good, and we donât feel that weâve reached our full potential in either of those areas just yet.â
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