The unflinching perseverance of Most Precious Blood remains commendable on "Merciless", their latest in a string of ferocious hardcore releases. Line-up changes, controversy and a refusal to mellow or adhere to current trends have seen them soldier on like cockroaches with an old-school mentality not often practiced these days.

Sticking to their guns and perhaps taking a step back to their Indecision roots from "Our Lady Of Annihilation", the band intently focus on the kind of loose hardcore aggression that helped to establish the scene. But rather than bark like mad dogs or toss out continual breakdowns, there's a sense of spacing to the gritty screams, which in turn come off like an enraged call to arms on issues both social and political.

A sharply jagged dose of metal guitar work and some pugnacious mosh-friendly grooves line the edges of the bands rough and tumble momentum, and with a few pensive breakdowns, the material shows that there is some depth behind their intimidating street brawler-like hostility. In essence, the band have better learned to balance their modern metalcore traits with their traditional hardcore roots and "Merciless" proudly displays it.

No nostalgia, no throwbacks, no pretending to be Swedish, just straight up powerful hardcore with a message retrofitted with some metal plating. Of course this also means it's repetitive and admittedly a bit short sighted in terms of taking the listener anywhere new. In fact, while many may cite the band as being controversial, there's an ambiguity to the lyrics that leaves such claims to be earned only by their rather dubious cover art.

Instead, this is rock solid metalcore being played by a group down to earth and socially aware enough to gain respect from the old guard. It may not reinvent the wheel, but it's still revved up and has enough substance in its tank to put a considerable amount of van-driven mileage on it.