Tag Archives: metal

WAR CLOUD – Chain Gang EP

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With their 2017 debut release, US metal titans War Cloud championed a very old fashioned style of music.  In tracks like ‘Red Witch’, their debt to the roots of Black Sabbath seemed obvious, while in faster paced material it was easy to trace influence directly back to ‘Stained Class’ era Judas Priest.  What the record lacked in originality, it made up for with musical chops and a lot of enthusiasm.  2019’s ‘State of Shock’ gave the world more of the same, but cranked up the energy.  By chucking in the odd riff borrowed from Diamond Head and Kiss, the band mined classic rock’s rich past a little further with some very retro results.  Understandably, by this point, those who liked War Cloud seemed to really love them.

Although a global pandemic ground the world to a halt in 2020 and put an end to live gigs for the foreseeable future, War Cloud maintained their presence with a pair of releases.  ‘The Earhammer Sessions’ presented choice cuts replayed live in the studio and, although a strong career overview, didn’t really provide much of an alternative to the original recordings, while ‘Chain Gang’ – a two song stop-gap EP – gave fans something more to enjoy while the band considered their next move.
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AMBASSADOR – Care Vale

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Two years on from their ‘Belly of The Whale’ album, this six track release from Ambassador presents the band in a slower and heavier mood than ever before. Throughout ‘Care Vale’s half-hour playing time, The Baton Rouge based post-rockers tackle a world of slow and intensive riffs, taking their sound further towards the gothic/doom variety, but without completely abandoning their previous love for a few proggy quirks. It’s worth noting that, from the outset, this slight musical shift means there isn’t anything on offer as immediately likeable – or melodic – as ‘Feral As They Were’, or necessarily as atmospheric as ‘Diorama’, but in terms of riffs, extant fans should still find something to enjoy.
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ANGELIC DESOLATION – Quorum Of Unspeakable Curses EP

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By fusing a truckload of old-school death metal riffs, a pinch of black metal vocal and the relentlessness of grindcore, US extreme metallers Angelic Desolation create a sound they’ve dubbed “American Razorgrind”.  Their third release, the catchily titled ‘Quorum of Unspeakable Curses’ delivers three more relentless slabs of riffery, coupled with the kind of vocal that could clear a room of any listeners not so keen on demonic growls. It doesn’t do much that genre fans won’t have heard before, but between some amazing technical abilities and a lot of force, Angelic Desolation still have plenty to offer the world of extreme metal.

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POWERMAN 5000 – The Noble Rot

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It must be hard having an older brother who is more famous than you. For Powerman 5000’s Spider One – younger brother of the legendary musician and film-maker Rob Zombie – it has meant constantly playing second fiddle in the rock press. Powerman have received some absolutely scathing reviews over the years – and most of them unfair. They’ve recorded some great work. Their ‘Blood-Splat Rating System’ full length (reissued as ‘Mega! Kung Fu Radio’ with the addition of a couple of earlier EP tracks) featured some cracking songs, even if it showed signs of a band still in need of some refinement. 1999’s mega-selling ‘Tonight The Stars Revolt’ remains an alternative metal classic; its riff heavy and hook heavy style could easily go head to head against Rob’s best work, and its sci-fi obsessed lyrics really helped to give PM5K a strong identity. Had the follow up ‘Anyone For Doomsday?’ not been pulled from release at the eleventh hour, the band’s quest for world domination would have been assured, but with shifting line-ups and varying musical styles dominating the next couple of releases, Powerman became very much more of a cult band.

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MOTHS / THE STONE EYE – Split EP

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In terms of split releases, this EP is very impressive. It ticks all of the boxes that a great split should in that, firstly, it introduces listeners to two great bands they might have missed and, secondly, it pairs some interesting original material with some well chosen covers.

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