My template for judging a band’s mettle in the hardcore scene can be broken down in the chorus of Fury’s track “The Feeling”: “An open heart, no matter how revealing, if it ain’t got no soul, it ain’t got that feeling.” When you see a band live, they gotta bring that energy, even if there’s only a dozen people in the room. When the energy is present, you can just see it in their eyes. They’ve got that feeling.
A band that I think has and will always have “the feeling” is Boston hardcore’s own Quick to Judge. The sound they bring on their records is already infectious, but when you see them live, it’s like a switch flips in the crowd and everyone has to start going ape shit.
Quick to Judge is one of those bands that just had it from the start. They dropped their demo in 2025, jumped on as many local shows as they could, and have now become a steady touring act across the scene. One listen to that 2025 demo, and you feel the urge to get up from where you’re sitting and move your feet because those fast, bouncy riffs just seem far too familiar.
A lot of bands cite The Rival Mob, Mental, and Righteous Jams as influences nowadays, but Quick to Judge sets themselves apart by actually transferring those influences into their songs and making their shows look as crazy as those bands’ sets did in their heyday. In short, if you’re reminiscing about “the good ol’ days” of hardcore and how crazy the shows you attended were, the good ol’ days are still happening. You’re just not here.
After two years of watching them rip it up onstage and tour a good chunk of the country, I finally got together with them for an interview right behind the Middle East on the night of the Living Weapon record release. When I asked about how they started out, bassist David explained, “Lee (vocals) and I originally wanted to do a band like Black My Heart, but we saw how many bands were out here doing that sound, so we changed it up and started looking at bands like Mental and all of DFJ’s stuff from the early 2000s.”
Switching from the mosh-centric sound to the more energized Lockin’ Out and early Bridge Nine style let them stand out because Quick to Judge sounded spirited, loud, and fun both live and on record.
By 2026, the band seemed like seasoned vets of the touring circuit, hitting shows across the East Coast within a year of releasing their demo and recently playing out West as well. This year, they solidified the sound that began with the demo when they put out the seven-song EP Product of Our Environment through Triple B Records. The tracks continued the bouncy, nimble Boston hardcore they teased on their demo and fully fleshed it out, focusing heavily on moshability and crowd interaction, which made their sets pop from start to finish.
While you’d think dropping almost an album’s worth of tracks and hitting the road for most of the year would slow them down, Quick to Judge wanted to keep the train rolling. They even expanded their lineup, with drummer Drew joining the fold and Manny and Jarrett coming aboard as additional guitarists.
This revamped lineup seems to have sparked even more creativity, as they have a new release coming early this fall: a four-track EP titled [Re]Genesis, which will completely shatter any expectations people have of them.
Where their last two releases featured hard-hitting, Lockin’ Out-styled hardcore, Quick to Judge intends to break the speedometer with the EP, incorporating blast beats and breakneck tempo switches into their classic BHC sound. Whatever you thought Quick to Judge was before, [Re]Genesis will change that, hence the title.
Talking about the influences for [Re]Genesis, guitarist Manny explained, “I’ve been really digging into Mind Eraser because whenever you dig far enough into DFJ you always end up at Mind Eraser. I’ve also been taking stuff from early UK hardcore bands like Heresy to make the new stuff even faster and tighter.”
This surprised me because I rarely hear people citing faster old-school bands like Heresy and even Mind Eraser these days. Too many bands want to be heavier with caveman riffs to keep the mosh up, but with this six-man lineup and tighter, faster songwriting, Quick To Judge loses no steam.
“I definitely love the Painkiller Records stuff like Think I Care, and maybe I’m just getting older. I feel like when you’re young, and into this scene, you want to play the heavy breakdowns and shit, but as you grow, you just want to go faster,” says Drew (drums).
“We’re still trying to keep that balance between all the fast stuff we’re picking up on but also sticking with, like, Right Brigade as an influence. We’re just trying to mix all that together and make it sound tighter than before,” Manny added.
From the demo onward, Lee focused his lyrics on daily struggles faced by those living outside the norm in society, making them a statement for this lifestyle. With the band going harder on [Re]Genesis, Lee wanted his lyrics to hit just as hard as the music.
“These songs are so fast and angry, and so I wanted to keep up with that. I’ll always have my lyrics talk about day-to-day shit living on the outside of what everyone else sees. I do want to give a shout-out to the guys in Start Today because they helped me a lot with writing some lyrics on this EP,” he explained.
These three new songs feel like a shot of adrenaline injected into their already infectious style. Each track blindsides you with a speedy entrance, a one-two punch from guitarists Manny, Jake, and Jarrett, rapid rhythms held down by Drew and David, and Lee’s vocals sounding as confident and pissed as ever. As fast as it is, there are plenty of moments to show your mosh skills if you’re quick and overly energetic, as young hardcore kids should be.
Bassist David compared it perfectly to the progression of Carry On’s discography, stating, “If you watched that HardLore interview with Carry On and look at their progression from The Line Is Drawn and Roll With the Punches EPs, by the time they got to A Life Less Plagued, they just hit it harder and harder each time. That’s what we were trying to do here, just be tighter and harder than before.”
The EP ends with a live cover of Mental’s “Sike,” one of Quick to Judge’s key influences from the start. This cover shows their appreciation for the band and the era they represented, and that Quick to Judge can match the energy Mental brought nearly two decades ago and carry it forward to the next generation.
[Re]Genesis showcases everything Quick to Judge has learned over the last two years of touring and fine-tuning their playing with each set they’ve ripped across the States. When you boil it down, however, the band's main goal is just to have fun and be fun on recordings, never wanting to take themselves too seriously.
“With this band we’re just trying to make songs that are catchy and fun because I feel like nowadays nobody wants to have fun anymore. Everything has to be an aesthetic, but we just want to write good music, drink a bunch of beer, and have fun,” Manny explained.
[Re]Genesis will be out October 2nd through Triple B Records, with tapes and CDs available at their shows. They’ll hit the road the following week, playing in Florida from October 9th through the 12th. That month, they’re also opening for BHC legends Have Heart at Big Night Live alongside The Sissy Boys, Neolithic, and Step First. They’ll announce more shows soon, so keep an eye on their socials.
Quick to Judge would like to shout out Start Today, The Difference, Suicide Eyes, The Sissy Boys, By My Blood, Neolithic, Can’t Lose, A Thief's Blade, Fiddlehead, Sam from Triple B, and anyone who’s shown them love.
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Quick to Judge on social media: Instagram
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