Lord Almighty: Wither (Self Released)
Occasionally you get a band who are by design very difficult to classify in one genre or another. This often makes them brilliant to listen too but annoying as hell to review as we writers do like things to be clear cut. However from their PR gives a hint towards what you can expect with mentions of Darkthrone, Mastodon, Thin Lizzy and ZZ Top, now that is eclectic! It's also strangely accurate as Lord Almighty are very much rooted in the blisteringly fast black metal assault, the tremolo picking and frenetic blast beats of Cry Of The Earth lull you into this sound very quickly however no sooner are you reaching for the corpse paint than they shift into something different such as the echoed hardcore-influenced sludge riffs of Sun Down or the slower more doomier tones of Rise.
So while the majority of the music here is black metal centered Wither is a progressive album in the truest sense the songs evolving as they progress moving between the frantic picking and downtuned proggy sludge riffs to cleaner sections that are influenced by that classic NWOBHM gallop and even some soulful blues playing which not only catches you off guard but comes organically never feeling forced, for instance Hour By Hour has that trad metal pump to it that segues nicely into the bouncy title track which closes out with some beautiful acoustic guitar playing. These Bostonians have created an album that blazes a trail all of its own, though with soundscapes that will be very familiar to listeners they are delivered in way that surprises and excites. 8/10
Blasfeme: Iniquity In Salvation (Wulfhere Productions)
Moord (guitar), Mettle (bass/vocals) and Striga Hell (drums) are the three damned souls that make up Bristol based black metal band Blasfeme. Their raw-yet-melodic, nihilistic black metal assault is filtered through death metal aggression and they have been impressing on the South West/Wales live circuit for a good few years. Iniquity In Salvation is the band's debut full length album following on their EP Path Of Despair in 2017, it has been formed on the stages of the UK the band honing their assault ready to unleash this full length upon the world. So in 2020, the world exploding around us the hellmouth has opened and Iniquity In Salvation is what it has spawned. Not for the faint of heart from the face melting opening of The Begotten Realm to the more cinematic closing piece Reditus Ignomiaiam Internecion the frenzy seldom relents.
Each track is accentuated by shorter pieces that are used as linking songs to keep the flow and work as intros as well with acoustic lilting on Tyranny Dethroned and The Descent adding to the atmospherics before things explode once again on Purgatised In The Veil. Lyrically the themes are what you'd want with occult, horror, paganism and Satanism as musically the band are very much in that early stages of black metal, (that 2nd wave Scandi scene for completists) from the rough and ready production to the alternatively growled screamed vocals the songs like The Mortal Trance batter everything in their path showing that death metal connection too, though Azaloth's Gift adds a discordant sound. If you indulge in Blasfeme's debut album then prepare to be assaulted by it, there's enough hammering heavy metal for Brunel to get excited about here so if you love your music at the outer edges of extreme then Iniquity In Salvation will be your latest set of unholy hymns to get down to. 8/10
Victorius: Rise From The Flames (Self Released)
Not to be associated with the German power metal band of the same name, this Victorius were formed in Scotland in 2006 but after several successful support slots, fate intervened and the band split due to personal differences. However as is the way with these things usually in 2016, drummer Ryan Shepherd vocalist/lead guitarist John Brandon and bassist John Gibbons all got back together due to social media and with the addition of guitarist Arroll Kelly they came a close second in the Glasgow M2TM and then set about writing this debut full length, which was finished during lockdown along with enough new material for two more albums. Since the reformation Kelly has left replaced by Stewart Kennedy on guitar but the musicals style of the band has stuck resolutely to the classic NWOBHM/Thrash template.
Rise From The Flames is a prophetic title that speaks about the band's return from the embers and they are certainly ablaze as Breaking Down The Walls opens with a style of riff you will have heard numerous times with Maiden looming large, though John Brandon's vocals are a little more in the Papa Het style, though occasionally he goes up into the higher realms. To The Death actually reminds this writer of 'Tallica's Motorhead covers, while Bleed For Me is probably the albums best track as powerful slow burner that starts off the longer, more technical songs to close out the record.
What's instantly obvious from this record from the outset is that often when bands split (and reform) it's because they originally had little talent but now have more free time (sorry it's true). However in this case Victorius have bag-full of talent the rampaging rhythm section of Shepherd, Gibbons and Kennedy is bouncy and slick, shifting between those trad NWOBHM and speed metal runs while Brandon's lead playing erupts with melodic brilliance also linking in to some lush twin guitar harmonies.
As well as the great performances the songwriting too is very good, yes they are well worn tropes but when bands such as Cauldron, Enforcer, Striker are all doing this sort of thing over in continental Europe it's nice to hear a UK based band jumping on the NWOTHM bandwagon to great effect. After a long wait Rise From The Flames is a worthy debut from this Scottish metal mob. Well worth seeking out! 8/10
Reaper: Stranger Than Fiction (Self Released)
Back in 2018 Rich gave Liverpudlian 'progressive' thrashers. first album Birth Of Chaos 8/10 calling it an "all you can eat buffet of absolutely relentless riffs". So will Reaper offer up another tasty morsel of thrash for us to devour with their second album Stranger Than Fiction? Well the short answer is a resounding yes. After a short intro it's the furious Sigil that gets things really going, with razor sharp guitar playing of Daniel Moran and Anthony Dalton the real focal point of this record much like it is on those more technically proficent thrash albums from bands such as Testament and Megadeth, a band Reaper cleary take a lot of influence from especially with Daniel's vocals and their usage of more progressive tones where the tracks like Upon The Sun move into acoustic flourishes ramping up the progressive nature of the band, as does the choppy Flight which shifts between multiple riffs at pace linking them together with an anthemic chorus. Now I've mentioned before that thrash really has to hit right with me to really enjoy it and Stranger Than Fiction really hits right especially on Afterlife and the very proggy Walk The Sky. It seems that the buffet is back open ready for hungry thrash fans to gorge, enjoy the musical feast! 8/10