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Hardcore: Carmín - Carmín (2015)


79 / 100
A strong, overlooked hardcore act from Chile, delivering passion and grit worthy of attention, especially for fans of emotionally charged hardcore.
Carmín has existed for about a decade and is still active, but unfortunately there isn’t enough information on this hardcore band from Santiago, Chile, not even on their own Facebook. Carmín can be interpreted as crimson, representing passion, darkness, and the theme of blood in the music they play.

There are two main EPs released, the self-titled (2015) and Migrar (2017), but they only went up on major streaming platforms in 2022. Even though they’re a rather small band, Carmín has good recording quality since it was recorded and mixed at Gitano Records, even mastered by Josema Muñoz in August 2015 in Seville, Spain, then also released and produced by Attitude Discos.

From the cover art alone, the atmosphere is obvious. Two palms looking rough and worn in dark tones and similar to atmospheric death/doom act, Clouds on Durere album artwork; a negative symbol of life that full of suffering or misfortune, for example in the opening lyrics:
No vivir (Not to live)
Competir (To compete)

Nada quedó (Nothing remained)
Nunca floreció (It never blossomed)
Miro mis manos (I look at my hands)
¿Y de qué sirvió? (And what good did it do?)
But this first song actually turns out to be the most aggressive, followed by “08 09 2013.” The type of slow-burn crescendo is attached to the middle track, “Gris, Apología a la Arrogancia,” as the emotional peak, with two more songs after that without forgetting the outpouring of anger that must be released. Now, the last track tries to give a spark of fire to become a better person, like its title, “Enyaso/Error.” Even though doubt and pessimism remain, everything must be tried. Fail, try again. Fail, try again.

Actually, I don’t care about hardcore and all the lyrics, but this examination gave me a stronger impression and let me appreciate the work more. So, if I have to say whether it’s good—well, it’s decent—but I still won’t make a playlist to put it in the “best hardcore so far,” since it doesn’t qualify for my main playlist. Same as many extreme metal releases I’ve gone through. Or maybe someday.

If I had to choose, the best ones are “El Fracaso,” “Gris, Apología a la Arrogancia,” “Todas Las Cajas Vacías,” and “Carmín.”

Carmín shows strong potential and should appeal to fans of Counterparts, Shai Hulud, and Converge.
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