Prong's blunt brutality creates a harsh reflection of life in the big city. Although this trio stands on the alternative fringes of New York City's hardcore and metal scenes, Prove You Wrong, its second major-label album and fourth overall, is more accessible. ''Unconditional'' balances a sense of impending danger with a downright hummable chorus, and on the title track some tasty blues riffs share company with the song's percussive fighting spirit. But Prong hasn't softened its tough stance. The unexpected rhythms and discord of ''Irrelevent Thoughts'' crackle like an electrical storm and ''Positively Blind'' is a syncopated descent into a modern-day hell. Prong combines postindustrial noise, a rebellious punk mentality, and heavy-metal flourishes and, with a minimalist approach that is anything but simplistic, strips them all down to a brutal essence. A-
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