Dwell & salk.'s clint. Forms Baltimore Grindcore Band Constituents with Fellow Hip-Hop Heads Zap, José & Thor (Death, Agony & Screams Cassettes and Vinyl)
"Heavy, Fast, Loud & Grinding. Powerviolence Forever. Grind or Die. Reppin' Baltimore, Maryland," reads Constituents' Facebook About description. Constituents (AKA CNSTS) is a newly-formed Baltimore Grandcore band consisting of clint. on guitar, frontman José, bassist Thor, and Zap on drums. Three of the four members being part-time rappers themselves: clint. AKA salk. of Dwell & salk. Zap/Zach moonlighting as Futurama-referencing sharp-spitter zap brannigan, and José being emcee no way jose—the latter two joining forces with DJ bobmaldad as Hip-Hop crew, Pleasant Boys. CNSTS are the latest in a recent trend... or maybe, just a mere coincidence of emcees starting/reverting back to their Hardcore/Punk-minded roots, such as: Ray Strife's OVER EVERYTHING (formerly DAD D*CK,) Carl Kavorkian's minimalist side-project MANIK|NETER, and Justin Mayer's DOOM & UK Crust Punks Doom mashing Old City EP, as well as clint.'s own homage to British Grindcore pioneers Napalm Death, Napalm Def, or simply, NxDEF, with producer buddy John "Jumbled" Bachman formed around 2006. Constituents have recently been making a number of release rumblings on both their Facebook (@constituentsgrind) and Instagram (@constituents_grindcore) pages and over the weekend, quietly unleashed their aptly-named 2017 DEMO EP on Bandcamp. While it consists of a total of four tracks, 2017 DEMO barely constitutes as an "EP," clocking in at a combined total runtime of 3:05 with two "micro-songs" each under 35-seconds. CNSTS will be selling an extremely limited run of Death, Agony & Screams Cassettes and Vinyl-pressed 2017 DEMO cassettes at their upcoming live debut on 10/29 at HELLZAPOPPIN' in Baltimore City. Constituents strongly suggest, those interested in attending, simply "Ask a Punk" for further details concerning their 10/29 gig and second show at Harm City on 11/7.
"We started nameless, obviously. We began as a hook-up between Zap (Zach) and myself (clint.) that John Bachman (Jumbled) facilitated, via an email exchange. Zap and I emailed and texted about ideas. We jammed out the initial nine [songs] I had written, in preparation. We clicked extremely well. We both loved fast, brutal stuff. Zap came from a more Hardcore and Metal background with myself, coming from a Grindcore background," clint. recounted over an email exchange sent directly to The Witzard. clint. added that both he and Zap initially bonded over a mutual love and admiration for "true Hip-Hop." clint. continues that "next, came the addition of José on vox. Again, he fit right in. His vocal style borrowed from a mixture of [Hardcore] and his listening to Brutal Truth. Again, he has a love for Hip-Hop; another puzzle piece in place. Finally, the cement was cured with the addition of Thor on bass. His mega-hammering, fuzzed-out tone and presence in the same DIY Grindcore scene as myself worked out perfectly. I have know Thor for years and Zap was contacted to try him out. Pretty dope to work with a cat whose old band (Clay Davis) was a local [favorite] of mine. And yes, another member very into Hip-Hop..."
- clint. (Constituents Guitarist)
