Glasgow’s hardcore scene has a long history of unrelenting grit and unwavering community. No Known Weakness is the latest addition to this legacy, but their impact is anything but another drop in the rain-soaked streets of their city. Composed of five veterans from Glasgow’s hardcore roots, this metallic hardcore unit isn’t here to play nice. Their debut demo, self-released on January 17, 2025, is a three-track manifesto of aggression, precision, and love for a scene they’ve called home for decades.
No Known Weakness is a product of Glasgow Hardcore’s tight-knit community.
Each member has put in their time with other seminal bands: Alex and Dave from By My Hands, Deakin from Burning Scars Of Betrayal and Pay The Price, Callum from Go Down Fighting, and their vocalist (formerly of Kingpin). Their paths have crossed at shows, rehearsals, and countless DIY venues, building a friendship that eventually led to jamming together. This wasn’t a rushed decision; it was the inevitable culmination of years immersed in the scene.
“Our goal is simple,” they explain. “We’re trying to write the most distilled and savage form of metallic hardcore Glasgow has heard yet. We’re heavily influenced by bands like All Out War, Shattered Realm, and Fury Of Five, and we want every track to hit hard in the pit.”
The band’s sound reflects this mission: Slayer-like riffs, unrelenting aggression, and breakdowns designed to send crowds into chaos. Their influences nod to hardcore’s global canon, but their DNA is unmistakably Scottish.
The three tracks on their debut demo encapsulate their ethos.
“Glasgow Hardcore” opens the demo and is purpose-built to get the pit moving. It pays homage to the city’s hardcore history with samples from Divide’s “Stalemate” and Demonstration of Power’s “Power.” There’s even a nod to the city’s cultural past with a clip from the 1920s song “I Belong To Glasgow.” The band describes it as a “straightforward, aggressive track” with gang vocals that are impossible not to chant along with.
“Nothing More To Say” tackles the frustration of arguing with the misinformed, a modern plague. “Everyone thinks they’re an expert in everything these days,” the band notes. The track features blast beats, a mid-paced groove, and a harmonized breakdown that feels both calculated and chaotic.
The self-titled “No Known Weakness” draws from the tradition of tracks like Merauder’s “Master Killer,” narrating the menace of an unstoppable force. “It’s an arse-beatingly heavy track,” they explain, driven by mid-paced mosh riffs and crushing breakdowns.
Scroll down to see the band’s detailed track by track rundown.
The cover art for the demo ties the whole package together. A stark black-and-white photo of the Glasgow Necropolis—a site tied to the city’s alternative subculture—symbolizes their connection to the city. “The Necropolis is part of Glasgow’s history, and it felt like the right fit for our sound,” they explain.
No Known Weakness debuted live in November 2024, opening for Born From Pain, and quickly followed up with their second show supporting US legends Ringworm. The energy in the room has been palpable, and the band is eager to see how their tracks resonate now that the demo is out. “We’ve had a fantastic and humbling response so far,” they say.
Looking ahead, they’re planning a physical release of the demo with Soul Purpose, a new Scottish label run by local hardcore stalwarts. “It feels right to work with a label so embedded in our community,” they note. Beyond the demo, they’re already sitting on a stack of new material and anticipate releasing a follow-up in 2025.
The band is also stepping into event organization with a charity show on March 8, 2025, at Glasgow’s Audio Lounge.
View this post on Instagram
Proceeds will go to Macmillan and Maggie’s, two cancer charities close to their hearts. The lineup is a testament to the depth of Glasgow Hardcore: Broken Oath’s return, Divide, Heads On Pikes, Suffering Rites, and, of course, No Known Weakness. Tickets are available through their Big Cartel page.
No Known Weakness live it. Every riff, every breakdown, and every decision is an extension of their lives in Glasgow Hardcore.
Full track by track rundown:
Words by the band.
“Glasgow Hardcore” – a big focus of the band is writing music that is engaging in a live performance, or writing tunes “for the pit” if you like.
The best thing for getting the crowd moving at shows is a strong opener, so we wrote this track as an intro not only for the demo but also for shows.
Metallic riffs and a straightforward, aggressive, mostly-gang vocal lyrics that are hopefully quick and easy for folk to learn and sing along with – the majority of the words are just the title of the song and the band name repeated a few times.
The aim was to write something that grabs people quite quickly on first listen, and is easily recognisable on subsequent listens. Something you don’t need to think too much about, you just fucking move to it. The title of the song and the samples at the start are a nod to our history with and love for our local scene. The first clip at the start is from “Stalemate” by Divide, a band who really set the groundwork for what Glasgow Hardcore is today, over 20 years ago.
View this post on Instagram
The second clip is from “Power” by Demonstration Of Power, a band who through their success in recent years have really done a lot to up the profile of Glasgow Hardcore worldwide. We were initially going to include clips of loads of GHC bands from over the past 25 years or so, but I didn’t want the intro to last for fucking ever, so I suggested just trimming it down to the OGs in Divide and then a very recent high-profile band in Demonstration Of Power, and then after that here’s our demo. The third clip in there is from “I Belong To Glasgow”, a song dating back to the 1920s Callum suggested we use as an intro, and it felt appropriate.
“Nothing More To Say” – I think this was the first song we ever jammed out as a band, but not sure. Coming in right after the intro it kicks off with a scream and some blastbeat type drumming before settling into a mid-paced groove, repeating that and then winding up in a big twin guitar harmonised breakdown with evil sounding gang vocals.
It’s about the futility of arguing with someone who has filled their head with nonsense and misinformation and already convinced themselves that they know what they’re talking about, despite having no real reason to believe in the credibility of their sources nor any real reason to believe they have the first clue of what they’re talking about. Everyone thinks they’re an expert in everything these days, eh.
“No Known Weakness” – actually, maybe THIS was the first song we jammed out as a band, and that’s why I named it after the band? I can’t remember which way round we wrote “Nothing More To Say” and “No Known Weakness”, but I know this came before “Glasgow Hardcore” because I probably wouldn’t have titled another track after the band if I knew we were going to write an intro!
View this post on Instagram
Regardless, this song isn’t actually about the band or anything, and is in the tradition of songs like “Master Killer” by Merauder by being an arse-beatingly heavy track about some unknown entity who is dangerous and will come get you and fuck you up if you cross them. It’s about someone with no known weakness.
It’s also appropriate that it’s self-titled because I think it’s mostly mid-paced mosh riffs and another big harmonised breakdown at the end are a pretty good representation of what the band is about.