Monday, December 14, 2015

Suppressive Fire-Bedlam (2016)

Sheer, breakneck speed with catchy riffs and harsh vocals, shouted and pushed almost to the point of death-metal gruffness, and his razor-sharp guitar tone slices through the riffs. Bassist is surprisingly agile -the bass lines are supportive without being merely doubling, and he knows exactly when to throw in a good fill, drummer is a human whirlwind, and keep up the pace admirably. 11 tracks, mix and mastering by Joel Grind of Toxic Holocaust. A very solid record in its own way, amusing, aggressive, pretty fast. Impossible to put in the same level of other new thrash metal releases. I’m sure you know which I mean. Undoubtedly a memorable work, bestiality and rage of “Bedlam” that make me appreciate this one a lot, because this is the genuine Thrash Metal sound: unadulterated, scruffy and insatiable. I wish they will release more albums like this, where the true old-school magic can be found. A masterpiece !
www.facebook.com/suppressivefire
jrbursey@gmail.com
facebook.com/clawhammerpr
Review by Paul Caravasi

Mutilated By Zombies-Decimation Sentence (2015)

Menacing piece of death metal. By menacing, I do not mean to say alienating or disturbing, emotions conjured up by Morbid Angel's Blessed Are The Sick or Demilich's Nespithe, for instance. No, by menacing, I mean that "Decimation Sentence" attempts to convey in a death metal album the feeling that you are about to be crushed by a tank, and by album's end, to have been crushed by said tank. Mutilated by Zombies achieve this sense of menace in every track by resorting minimally to melody (and even in the guitar solos, melody is not the primary consideration), and instead focusing on simple, aggressive, downtuned riffs frequently played at high tempos, backed by viscerally audible bass and fierce drumming that alternates between blastbeats and slower rhythms, and gutteral yet discernible vocals that complement the music perfectly. There are ample time changes and transitions in each song to prevent a sense of familiarity from setting in with the listener, which consequently prevents any dilution of aural menace that this band so successfully conveys. Intense and significant to the formula of calculated brutality that is on display here. Listen to "Maggot Bath" and " Mock The Sun" and tell me that you do not feel like killing someone...by rolling over them with a tank!
www.facebook.com/MutilatedByZombies
mutilatedbyzombies@gmail.com
Review by Paul Caravasi

Saturday, December 5, 2015

Witchery-Next Victim (Ep-2015)

Witchery embodies everything inherent in thrash metal. It's not merely enough to buck the trend, it has to be violated. Rediscovering that magic that Metallica lost more than 20 years ago, but add to it a much needed dose of sheer, unadulterated adrenaline. And when I say adrenaline, I mean a literal needle right to heart resulting in a massive surge of energy. Rapid paced chug riffing and super-smooth lead guitar tone.This Ep mostly rests comfortably in the upper echelons of high octane thrashing, conjuring up images of the insanity that typifies Slayer and Kreator, occasionally tempered with a gallop happy approach more in line with Jon Schaeffer. Mid-tempos before launching into that familiar bombardment of unfettered mayhem. A must have for anyone looking to send his own head flying into a sea of moshing lunatics at the behest of the almighty riff. Be sure to check out the brutal yet faithful "Demolicion" (Los Saicos cover). Get a taste of where these crazed Peruvians Thrashers got to offer !
www.facebook.com/witcherythrash
Review by Paul Caravasi