Face of Collapse

Around the turn of the ‘90s, at the fringes of the hardcore scene, a proggier offshoot began to take shape, as bands such as Slint, Don Caballero and Bitch Magnet all combined abrasive heaviness with structural adventurousness in fresh and thrilling ways. But the initial phase of the unofficial movement that would come to be known as math rock arguably peaked on the second full-length by Dazzling Killmen, which, depending on your viewpoint, is either progressive rock at its bleakest and most harrowing or post-hardcore at its most technically and compositionally advanced. The combo of the band’s trio of jazz-trained virtuosos (bassist Darin Gray, drummer Blake Fleming and guitarist Tim Garrigan) and punk-rooted guitarist-shouter Nick Sakes produced a unique combustion that manifested in precision bursts like “Staring Contest” and “My Lacerations” and moody, whisper-to-a-shriek epics like “Bone Fragments” and “In the Face of Collapse.” Thirty years on, the combination of brains and brutality on offer here remains nearly unparalleled.