Turbokill’s debut full length ‘Vice World’ introduced many metal fans to a band with a “classic” sound. Taking huge cues from the likes of Judas Priest and fellow Germans Accept, the album flaunted a whole world of twin lead guitar breaks and absolutely ripping solos set against a barrage of unashamedly 80s influenced riffs. On the album’s more bombastic tunes like ‘Pulse of The Swarm’ occasional even heavier moments gave vocalist Stephan Dietrich a massive platform from which to share a huge vocal, but on tunes like ‘Global Monkey Show’, the adoption of a more speed driven, party metal sound gave him the opportunity to truly soar. With numbers like ‘Fortress of The Universe’ showing how the band could also keep up with European power metal trends, ‘Vice World’ was an album that fans of traditional metal couldn’t afford to miss.
BRACKISH – Rear View EP
Since their formation in 2015, emo punk band Brackish have always drawn from a nostalgic sound. On the self titled album from 2022, the pop punk influence of Get Up Kids can be found jostling alongside even more emo-centric elements, creating something that’s both punchy and melodic. Despite some of the vocals being a little more off-kilter than might be considered ideal, the record supplied thirty one minutes of top drawer riffs, throwing the listener into a musical landscape that showed how, sometimes, it’s better to take an established sound and recycle it well than try to create something completely new.
PARADIS – Paradis EP
Metalcore outfit Paradis pull no punches on their self-titled debut EP. From about thirty seconds into the opening number ‘Boneyard’, the London based band truly go for the throat in terms of riffs. Following a lengthy synth based intro, the number crashes into a heavy groove where the rhythms mix metalcore anger with the kind of complexity you’d expect to hear from a prog metal band like Periphery, combined with the dirty guitar tones to match.
FEDERALE – Reverb & Seduction
Coming four years after ‘No Justice’, the world was overdue a new Federale album at the time of this release, but ‘Reverb & Seduction’ isn’t “just another Federale disc”. In the words of main man Collin Hegna, the album is “the culmination of 20 years of sonic exploration” and an attempt to bring all of Federale’s eclectic moods and influences together in one package. The result is an eclectic treat, with elements of Spaghetti Western soundtracks, indie, rock, cosmic country and dark singer songwriter moods all jostling for the listener’s attention, and without any one of those styles becoming a particular, dominant force.
Listen: Bottlemoth return with superb new track ‘Landslides (People Change)’
Bottlemoth’s debut single ‘Tattoo’ introduced listeners to a band who clearly understood the value in a great melody. A few months on, ‘Landslides (People Change)’ captures another really accessible guitar driven tune that’s just a little more thoughtful than most indie rock fare.