“Unaltered Perspective” proves exactly why INCLINATION have been turning so many heads in their relatively short existence. The album features a seemingly endless well of vicious riffs courtesy of guitarists Peter Katter and Isaac Hale (who also plays with heavyweights Knocked Loose), while bassist Caleb Murphy and drummer Christopher Mills provide an earth-shaking foundation. And all the while the band’s towering sound provides the perfect delivery system for vocalist Tyler Short’s roaring voice and pointed lyricism.
To mark the announcement, Inclination have shared a new song, “Epidemic”. The pummeling track follows “Thoughts and Prayers” and “A Decision” which drew attention from the likes of Stereogum, The FADER, Revolver Magazine, BrooklynVegan, and more. Featuring guest vocals from Indecision vocalist Tom Sheehan, “Epidemic” picks up where those songs left off, with the band’s towering, ’90s-influenced hardcore somehow sounding even more cutting than ever before.
Short discussed the new song, saying: “The message in ‘Epidemic’ stems from the wanton destruction brought on by the pharmaceutical industry in the Unite States. Politicians and policy makers happily look the other way and get rich while the opioid crisis kills tens of thousands of Americans every year. Tom Sheehan from Indecision recorded a part on the track and his unmistakable voice and style really amplify the frustration and desperation conveyed throughout the song”.
And Murphy talked about “Unaltered Perspective”, adding: “The lyrical aim of Unaltered Perspective was capture the anguish and sadness wrought by a series of observations and lived experiences. Frustration from being at the mercy of a society. that treats people as a commodity, or the despair of a friend throwing their life away for nothing. The record is about looking at these experiences as an opportunity for self-reflection and growth, and making a conscious decision to not let your past limit your future. It’s about finding the strength to keep fighting. The record draws a lot of influences from 90’s metallic hardcore but also treads into territory that is new to Inclination. We wholeheartedly think it is our absolute best material to date”.
Recorded by Andy Nelson at Bricktop Recording (Foundation, Weekend Nachos, Jesus Piece), Inclination’s crushing debut LP pulls no punches sonically or lyrically. The outspokenly straight edge band have shown themselves to not only be one of the most aggressive bands in modern hardcore, but also one of the most thought-provoking. Throughout “Unaltered Perspective” Short explores his ethos from both a deeply personal perspective as well as from a more external view, often targeting the systemic rot at the heart of the drug epidemic. The result is an 11 track onslaught that’s as sure to inspire stage dives and introspection alike.
Since their formation in 2019, Inclination have quickly become one of the most exciting new groups in aggressive music. The outspokenly straight edge five-piece have shown themselves to not only be one of the more ferocious groups in modern hardcore, but also one of the more thought-provoking. Now with the release of their debut full-length, Unaltered Perspective, Inclination have pushed their towering sound and their ethos even further than ever before.
Recorded by Andy Nelson at Bricktop Recording (Foundation, Weekend Nachos, Jesus Piece), Unaltered Perspective pulls no punches sonically or lyrically. The album features a seemingly endless well of vicious riffs courtesy of guitarists Peter Katter and Isaac Hale (who also plays with heavyweights Knocked Loose), while bassist Caleb Murphy and drummer Christopher Mills provide an earth-shaking foundation. The band’s crushing, ‘90s-influenced sound is metallic hardcore in the truest sense, and it offers the perfect vehicle for vocalist Tyler Short’s roaring voice and pointed lyricism.
Throughout the Unaltered Perspective Short explores his ideals from both a deeply personal perspective as well as from a more external view, often targeting the systemic rot at the heart of America’s drug epidemic. Pummeling tracks like “Epidemic” and “Thoughts and Prayers” take aim at the tangle of greed and corruption amongst pharmaceutical companies, politicians, the media, and for-profit insurance. “Politicians and policy makers happily look the other way and get rich while the opioid crisis kills tens of thousands of Americans every year,” Short says. “The fact that the majority of these individuals are in the pocket of the pharmaceutical companies that helped push these drugs on people who were not clearly informed of the risk all but guarantees that no substantive change would or could be made. Instead, they take to the complicit media and offer thoughts and prayers. Thoughts and prayers can’t fix the backbreaking labor or economic anxiety that hangs around the working classes neck 52 weeks a year but as long as healthcare is allowed to run as a for-profit enterprise those existential problems have no incentivized solution. So we will be patronized by our leaders and divided amongst each other while they attempt to convince us that it’s our fault for ending up here and it won’t matter how many of us die in the pursuit of the almighty dollar.”
Inclination carry the torch for a long tradition of unabashedly straight edge hardcore, a throughline evidenced on Unaltered Perspective by guest appearances from musicians like Tom Sheehan (Indecision), Ryan Savitski (One Step Coser), and Russell Bussey (Magnitude). On “A Decision” Short explores his worldview and the personal choice that shaped it. “‘A Decision’ is a look at the feeling of finding straight edge at the age I did,” he explains. “I still really didn’t know who I was and decided to identify with the movement–that’s what straight edge is to me, it’s a movement towards something. I think that ‘something’ varies depending on who you are talking to… Straight edge has shaped my life and I think there is value to everyone’s individual journeys toward this collective idea.”
The mindset infused into Unaltered Perspective goes beyond simply choosing a sober lifestyle–it’s a rejection of the callousness that often permeates modern life, an encouragement to find a well of determination that you might not have known you possess. The result is an 11 track onslaught that’s as sure to inspire stage dives and introspection alike. “The aim of Unaltered Perspective was to capture the anguish and sadness wrought by a series of observations and lived experiences,” explains Murphy. “Frustration from being at the mercy of a society that treats people as a commodity, or the despair of a friend throwing their life away for nothing. The record is about looking at these experiences as an opportunity for self-reflection and growth, and making a conscious decision to not let your past limit your future. It’s about finding the strength to keep fighting.”
