siLLy puPPy KOBOL is a brand spanking new powerviolence act from the frigid city of Tromsø, Norway which sits above the Arctic circle. So what’s to do there? Well make caustic angsty hardcore punk inspired noise of course!

The name KOBOL comes from the original 70s series Battlestar Galactica and referred to the ancestral home planet of humanity which was destroyed to to environmental catastrophes which may explain the odd outer space scene of the Earth as seen from (presumably) the moon.

This debut release VOID emerges in 2020 and is pretty much a typical powerviolence styled performance that fuses hardcore and crust punk with metal aspects from grindcore. The album follows the powerviolence etiquette to a T with a short playing time of 12 minutes and 47 seconds and includes 15 tracks, most of which are under a minute. The longest track “Voyager” is only 1:14.

It’s unclear if KOBOL is a band or a one-man act but is recorded quite well with a modern production but not too polished to keep that filthy raw edge. The short tracks are bombastic and to the point with a few ambient moments such as the outro “Blackout” ending. “Old Soul” begins and sets the tone for a rather typical powerviolence release.

The vocals are more punk than metal with shouts of rebellion emerging from the cacophonous din and are for the most part shouted declarations of war rather than sung in any particular style. There are some call and response features like an old school punk band. The lyrics seem to be focuses on the sci-fi themes of the TV show that inspired the name of the band.

VOID is a well-performed powerviolence styled release of heavy caustic crust punk with a few core influences but in the end doesn’t really stand out tremendously from the countless bands who have jumped on the hardcore punk revival bandwagon. KOBOL certainly checks off all the ingredients in making a believable legit album of this style but in the end hasn’t exactly found its own identity either, nevertheless a decent listen for those who can’t get enough of this stuff.