Earth Crisis Exhumed

Armed with a new album that can be best described as mosh pit fuel, Syracuse's Earth Crisis, who called national attention to the straight edge (no drinking, no drugs, no smoking) scene and the animal rights/vegan movement in the mid-to-late 1990s, have been exhumed. The band, often defined by its militant adherence to the clean, "XXX" lifestyle while infusing hardcore screams with chunky, metallic breakdowns, is finally back together with several original members after splitting in 2001.

Vocalist Karl Buechner explained the band's reasons for reuniting, telling Noisecreep that he believed that Earth Crisis would resurface. "I think we always knew that Earth Crisis wasn't finished when we ended it in 2001," Buechner says. "We were a bit burnt out from years of touring, but I think inside, we all knew it was really just a hiatus. Earth Crisis is embedded in our DNA, so a new record at some point was inevitable."

'To the Death,' their first batch of brand new material since 2000's 'Slither,' is due out May 5 via Century Media and is sure to get pit dwellers to pick up change and karate kick like it was 1995. The band's patented, boot-to-the-teeth style remains fully intact on songs like 'Against the Current' and 'So Others Live.'

Buechner also claims that "To The Death is definitely one of our proudest moments. To come back after eight years and release what I think will be received as our heaviest record to date is a huge accomplishment for us." Buechner and ExCx, who will also partner up with PETA this go-round, also hope that the record awakens the semi-dormant, sleeping giant that is the vegan/animal liberation/straight edge scene. Buechner says, "I hope it breathes a little life back into the scene that was thriving in the 90s. It would be nice to have the days back where a band's lyrics provoked some thought again."