In 2007, Sydney’s Hardcore/crossover outfit No Apologies dropped their debut album Survival. Eighteen years later, they have more to say and are back with their follow-up album, Life, a powerful soul-tearing salute to the tumult, tenderness, and tenacity of the human spirit, and it does not disappoint.
No Apologies – Life
Release Date: 29 August 2025
Words: Jools Green
Life is a musical journey through the depths of existence. A narrative woven with threads of mortality, acceptance, and resilience, this is a deeply personal confession that recounts one man’s confrontation with mortality and another’s reconciliation with loss.
You cannot fail to be moved by the content.
The line-up for this release consists of founders guitarist Pete Abordi and vocalist Peter Bursky, joined by three members of Stoner/Doom metal outfit Sumeru, Andres Hyde on drums, Chris Wilson on guitar, and Patrick Taylor on bass, who help to infuse some interesting boundary-smashing elements to the No Apologies sound.
The album also features guest appearances from Todd Jones (Nails, Carry On, Terror), who also guested on a couple of tracks on Survival, and Jem Siow (Speed).
The ten-track, thirty-one-minute offering runs in a linear fashion, from birth to death and beyond. Opening with Womb/Birth where searing sounds break the silence. Enhanced with the haunting echoes of the didgeridoo, the song erupts into a charging assault of d-beat driven crunchy riffs.
The classic hardcore shout delivered lyrics punch though with determination. Around midway, there is a dramatic drop and direction shift, the pace becoming a little slower and reflective, but maintaining that crunchy punch. The line “… from here to eternity, I will remain” hits hard and powerfully on your thoughts.
The next piece Life, as it opens, is an up-tempo chugging driver with a catchy groove punctuated with bursts of soaring leadwork. The pace plummets and becomes crushing in the latter part. Lyrically, it reflects on the loss of someone and how, as the lyrics say, “life goes on, but will never be the same…..life goes on, with or without you.”
Opening with the ticking clock, Time initially delivers slower, dark, heavy, classically styled hardcore riffs. The vocals punch out over the top. The pace ramps up towards the midway point, punctuated with bursts of a catchy groove that twists and turns, the line “time waits for no man, time heals nothing” impacting hugely.
I particularly love how the vocals, again, punch through the riffs on Illness. The soaring leadwork builds on the texture, particularly the extended burst in the second half, which soars and dominates the whole of the second half of the piece. The lyrics are stoically reflective on one’s mortality.
Reflecting its title, Palliative/Tomb is a somewhat different piece to a greater extent. With clean, sparse acoustic guitar alongside clean reflective vocals and a haunting slide guitar in the background, it is a beautifully contemplative, reflective piece. This ramps up to powerful riffs and hardcore shouts, but maintains the same pace in the final thirty seconds, adding a profound impact to the piece.
Opening with pummelling drum work and squealing guitar, Loss reflects on the death of loved ones and not being there at their passing. Alongside a soundtrack of brutal and engaging riffs, there is a mix of frantic hardcore drive with groovier, catchy swathes and a searing swathe of closing thrashy leadwork. It is lyrically moving and at the same time positive and uplifting.
Lyrically Hollow tells of the emptiness after the loss of a loved one and the inner fight experienced. Set to a powerful, crunchy riff backdrop that also harbours an attention-grabbing groove, the direction switches in the latter part of the track after a massive drop alongside a wave of squealing riffs, but maintaining that crunchy crush.
The next two pieces feature guest artists. Firstly, Grief with additional vocals from Jem Siow of Australian Hardcore outfit Speed, again, is a groovy chugger with superbly punctuated and unique riffs, beautifully haunting lead work and lyrical content that hits hard. I love the crunchy breakdown at the end.
Grief is followed by Eternal which features additional guitars courtesy of Todd Jones of US Grindcore/Powerviolence/Hardcore outfit Nails. It might only be fifty-eight seconds long, but holy hell, what a fifty-eight seconds.
An initially frantic tempo crusher that levels out in pace but still packs a punch, it’s short, sharp, and brutally to the point and utterly brilliant too.
The final offering, Peace, is the longest track. It delivers a sense of acceptance of sorts, and brings throughout a superb balance between crushing riffs and catchy groove. It is a slow heavy builder but at almost one minute in, the pace elevates, keeping that heady mix of crush and groove. I love the layers of vocal harmonies subtly applied midway through. In the middle of the second half, it drops back to allow further lyrical reflections to come through. A hugely powerful and dark piece that allows just enough light of hope to shine through.
With Life, No Apologies really do deliver, as the band say, “an unflinching reminder that in facing the music of our mortality, we find the raw truth of what it means to truly live.”
That is a very powerful message. Life is also a damn fine listen that engages from start to finish.
No Apologies release Life on 29 August 2025 via Last Ride Records. It is available as vinyl from lastriderecords.com or as a digital album from Life | No Apologies | Last Ride Records at Bandcamp.
