BIOHAZARD - Divided We Fall

Artist:  Biohazard
Album:  Divided We Fall
Year:  2025
Genre:  Hardcore

THEY’RE BACK MUTHERFUCKASSSSSS!!!  Sorry about that.  It felt like an appropriate way to introduce this review and I would make a substantial wager that Biohazard would approve of it.  For anyone who may not be familiar with Biohazard, I could easily just describe them as a New York hardcore band that combined elements of metal and rap with their street-level hardcore.  That description is a severe injustice to the band and their legacy.  Like it or not, Biohazard is thee band responsible for blending those musical elements and paving the way for future acts such as Korn, Machine Head, Madball, Slipknot and many more.  As I said, you can like it or not, but what you cannot do is deny the widespread influence.  Faith No More is often credited for the inception of rap metal.  While that could be true, Biohazard made it ok for the underground to join in the fun.  It wasn’t only future mainstream prospects that caught what they were throwing down.  Go listen to lesser known bands such as Tension or Undertow and the groove that dominated hardcore in the early to mid-90s. 

The four most long-standing members are back again and there’s an evident chemistry that occurs when they convene.  13 years ago, they united to come up with a solid record; nothing that rewrote the genre, but another Biohazard release that demonstrated strength and sincerity.  So, what do the OGs have left in the tank for 2025?   The answer is more than anyone, including me, expected. They are proving age means fucking nothing and that when all the cylinders are firing, very few can replicate the energy, fury and persona that is Biohazard.  A very good friend of mine spoke some truth after I heavily suggested he give their new album, Divided We Fall, a serious listen. When I anxiously asked for his thoughts, he replied, “they’re still better than the 1000 clones they spawned.”  He’s right and it’s absurd that Biohazard often are treated as some kind of ironic band to like in punk and hardcore circles, as if people need the scene’s permission.  Or they’re viewed as a “guilty pleasure” which is a completely stupid qualifier for anything.  You either stand behind what you like, or you don’t.

Here are the facts: they just released a crushing new album and continue to be a formidable and commanding force as a live act.  The guys are pushing 60 and look like they’re 25 on stage and exude more heart than can be measured.  Knowing this, if you had told me a new Biohazard record would contend for a spot in my top albums of 2025, even I would’ve raised a curious eyebrow. And yet here we are, with Biohazard proving that they still reign supreme in the kingdom they created and that they are still harder and more genuine than those 1000 clones that were mentioned.  Hardcore is not an easy game to play for the long haul, but they’ve done it for 38 years.  I certainly didn’t expect them to release anything mediocre, but I also didn’t expect what came blasting out of my speakers.

Divided We Fall is everything you could want out of an unrelenting, heavy-ass New York Hardcore band.  Of course, it contains a ton of mudhole-stomping breakdown riffs which will enrage any mosher enough to try to run head-first through a brick wall, yet there are a few things that stand out making this album different than their last few releases.  First, this album is fucking heavy.  Heavy sounding.  Heavy riffs.  Heavy vocals.  The production is stellar and does so much justice to the rage they are taking out on their instruments.  Sonically, this album will knock your head off whether you dig the songs or not.  Second, Billy sounds like State Of The World Address Billy again!  Vocally, Evan has always sounded just as he always has, but Billy changed to a more melodic scream/yell type thing, which also led to more melody in the songs.  I recently read an interview with him where he said over the years he’s “learned to sing” so he didn’t injure his throat.  He also said in the interview that the producer needed him to ruin his voice for this album.  Billy is fucking ferocious again and all melody is nonexistent.  This could also be why each song is so goddamn feral.  Third, this album is fast! Yeah, yeah, speed isn’t everything, but for Biohazard, it’s a welcomed strength. I’ve always thought their talent lied in the in the slow-to-midtempo bulldozing grooves they unleash which send fans into a frenzy, yet they often channel a thrashy, old-school hardcore vibe and it’s phenomenal.  I haven’t heard a modern hardcore record that starts this savagely in a while and it will weed out the naysayers instantly.  You will know after the first few songs whether or not this album is for you.  Not everything is perfect, as now I’ve started skipping the song “S.I.T.F.O.A.,” but the album is lethal.  Biohazard haven’t sounded this pissed since their 2003 slab of anger, Kill Or Be Killed.  Unlike KOBK, this album has more focus behind it as nothing on Divided We Fall lasts over 4 minutes and hits like a bomb.  It’s great to hear a band from the 80s put music into the world that isn’t a failed recapture of their glory days.  Divided We Fall is sincere and relevant.  I’d rather not wait another 13 years for Biohazard to release an album this good, but if that’s what it takes, I’ll wait.

Listen to "Word To The Wise" here.