INTENTION's first record has arrived!
Centered around Nagoya and Mie, INTENTION have made their name in the scene playing in various locations. This mini album is their first, long-awaited, recorded release. Like the reputation of their shows, this record is bound to leave an impact on the world. All 7 songs are a performance in full-force. The vocals are on flame with rocking guitars, boiling your blood a la BURNING SPIRITS descended hardcore. The cherry on top is the artwork, drawn by world renown hardcore illustrator SUGI.


Our take: Beach Impediment brings us the debut record from Japan’s Intention. Intention sounds pretty much like what you’d expect based on the Sugi artwork: traditional Burning Spirits-style hardcore with a huge sound, barked vocals, gang choruses, and blazing lead guitars. The songs are compact, focused on delivering high-impact riff after riff with none of the bloat or pomposity that sometimes mars records in this style. The Burning Spirits classics like Death Side, Bastard, Judgement, etc., are fine points of reference, but Intention really reminds me of D.S.B., particularly on the more anthemic tracks like “未​知​な​る​旅​路.” The lack of bloat here also extends to the running length; these seven tracks are in and out in a flash, before you catch even a faint whiff of boredom. I’ve heard some talk about how this style of traditional Japanese hardcore is on the wane, but Intention proves there’s still life in this storied scene.