Walking in the Shadows Steve Grimmett’s Grim Reaper 2016 Dissonance Productions Grim Reaper are a Heavy Metal band that first came on the scene with the NWOBHM movement in the early 1980’s with Steve Grimmett and Nick Bowcott’s distinctive vocals and guitar sound. Grim Reaper gathered serious airplay with their debut album and title track, See You in Hell, released in 1983 but unfortunately, disbanded 5 years later. Steve Grimmett reformed Grim Reaper in 2006 minus Bowcott under the moniker Steve Grimmett’s Grim Reaper releasing the live EP, Alive and Kicking in 2011. Under their new name, Walking in the Shadows is technically the debut album and obviously features the vocals of Grimmett with Ian Nash on the guitars who previously worked in Grimmett’s solo band. The rhythm section features Martin Trail on bass and one time Blitzkrieg drummer, Paul White. The first noticeable difference between Grimmett of the present and of the past is that Grimmett’s voice has aged gracefully, yes his may have lost its high wail that was present on their early albums, but Grimmett’s voice is now worn in with experience and although weaker than it once was, it is now arguably better than before. Walking in the Shadows has been produced by Grimmett and Nash who have done a much better job than some of the more seasoned producers that have worked on bigger records this year. Walking in the Shadows sounds fresh, harking back to the original Grim Reaper roots, whilst breathing life into a band whose final few chapters were marred with legal disputes. The drone of a bomber signals the opening track, Wings of Angels and blasts forward in a barrel roll of classic Heavy Metal that is not only catchy, but full of hooks and it will not take long for you to begin humming along with its huge 80’s chorus that would have easily fit alongside their MTV repertoire. However, the new material from Grim Reaper can draw parallels with the latest releases of Saxon with both bands having a similar style, Grimmett having a voice that is sparser and less powerful than Biff Byford. Walking in the Shadows is not a nostalgia trip, in fact, Walking in the Shadows is almost a million miles away from the Grim Reaper of the past. Grimmett and co. let the music talk for them with their huge choruses that are infectious and extremely catchy, building up from something as simple as chugging before the songs explode. The best thing about Walking in the Shadows is that it is difficult to pinpoint one song for this, the entire is album is a fantastic piece of craftsmanship from the title track, through Reach Out, From Hell, Call Me in the Morning, Come Hell or High Water and the cheesy Thunder and Rock Will Never Die. But when this album is on, you don’t care about the cheese factor, because Walking in the Shadows is just thoroughly enjoyable. Walking in the Shadows is possibly one of the best albums that has been released this year. Not only is Walking in the Shadows a shock, it is just fun to listen to and it is great to Steve Grimmett back in the back saddle of the Heavy Metal steed. If you love Heavy Metal with catchy choruses, NWOBHM and even if you’ve never heard Grim Reaper and are a fan of Saxon, Judas Priest and other bands of that style, go out and buy Walking in the Shadows, you will not be disappointed. 9/10 Adam Walking in the Shadows (Grimmett/Nash)
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Sunrise to Sundown Spiritual Beggars 2016 InsideOut Records Spiritual Beggars are a Heavy Metal band from Sweden that formed in 1992 by Michael Amott after he left Carcass. Spiritual Beggars play Metal with a huge 70’s Hard Rock/Psychedelic vibe that at times pushes towards Stoner and would appeal to fans of early Uriah Heep, Whitesnake and Mk III Deep Purple. Sunrise to Sundown is the 9th studio album by Spiritual Beggars and is the follow up to 2013’s Earth Blues and continues in a similar vein with Sunrise to Sundown whilst also carrying a huge Deep Purple influence. As mentioned above, Spiritual Beggars contains ex-Carcass and current Arch Enemy guitarist Michael Amott. Joining Amott is his fellow Arch Enemy bassist, Sharlee D’Angelo with Ludwig Witt of Grand Magus fame on the drums as well as live Grand Magus/Candlemass keyboardist Per Wiberg and ex-Firewind vocalist Apollo Papathanasio who replaced Grand Magus vocalist JB Christoffersson in 2010. The production for Sunrise to Sundown has been given the 70’s overhaul by Staffan Karlsson who is known for his retro 70’s Stoner sound and his work on Sunrise to Sundown is second to none. The word Stoner can often conjure up certain musical connotations, but do not let this put you off as Sunrise to Sundown has more akin to Deep Purple and Uriah Heep than say Monster Magnet or Fu Manchu, but could quite happily hold the middle ground appealing to both sets of fans; a testament to the writing of Spiritual Beggars and the production laid over by Karlsson. If you’re a fan of the ‘retro’ sound and have never heard Spiritual Beggars before then the opening title track will give you a taste of what to expect. The whole album has vocals that swing between a soulful David Coverdale, to a high David Byron and would highly appeal to either sets of fans. In fact, the tracks I Turn to Stone and Dark Light Child wouldn’t be out of place on Uriah Heep’s Demon’s and Wizards or Salisbury whilst Diamond Under Pressure’s heavy Hammond organ sound draws parallels to Deep Purple’s Might Just Take Your Life from 1974’s Burn. However, Spiritual Beggars aren’t all about living in the past, the bass groove of Lonely Freedom is so prominent that it will have your sub-woofer bouncing and has more akin to Stoner Rock with that smooth laid back desert sound showing that Spiritual Beggars are not a one trick pony of 70’s hero worship. Lonely Freedom is not only driven along by the awesome looping bass, but by some pounding drums as Witt shows a side of him that is sometimes masked by his performances in Grand Magus. Spiritual Beggars chose the track Hard Road to be the video single from Sunrise to Sundown and features a rather meaty riff, reminiscent of Blackmore standards and once more is driven forward by Witt’s phenomenal rhythmic drums, creating a song that is not only excellent, but also exceptionally catchy and full of hooks – a trend that flows that throughout the whole of Sunrise to Sundown. Sunrise to Sundown is a great album, as stated above, it is not just 70’s hero worship, but it is something else. It is a group of fantastic musicians who show that away from their respective bands are able to create an album without having the millstone of ‘supergroup’ tied around its neck and without having their work compared to their bands. Sunrise to Sundown is a great surprise that will appeal to a broad spectrum of fans because it is not just a good album, it is a lot of fun to listen to as well. 8/10 Adam Night Hides the World Spellcaster 2016 Prosthetic Records Spellcaster are a Heavy Metal band from the USA formed in 2009. The type of Metal that Spellcaster play can best be described as traditional Heavy Metal with themes revolving around death and dying, the night time world and its connotations and of course, with a name like Spellcaster, there is obviously that element of fantasy, role-playing style mythology with links to such things as Game of Thrones. Night Hides the World is the 3rd studio album by Spellcaster and the follow up to 2014’s eponymous album. Night Hides the World does not stray far from the template laid down from Spellcaster and the first release, 2011’s Under the Spell. Spellcaster is composed of vocalist Tyler Loney, the guitars of Cory Boyd and Bryce Van Hoosen and the rhythm section of bassist Gabriel Franco and drummer Colin Vranizan. The production of Night Hides the World has been done by decent and reliable producer Zack Ohren along with Spellcaster themselves. Ohren has worked with many up and coming Metal bands and always hits the mark. His work on Night Hides the World is as always brilliant, Ohren helping to guide Spellcaster as to exactly the sound that they are after. Night Hides the World begins with the rolling snare drum of the exceptionally catchy Aria. Aria shows the strong and soaring vocals of Loney which is more than prolific throughout the album, but in particular, Loney’s voice in the chorus to Aria can draw parallels to James-Paul Luna of White Wizzard and Holy Grail fame. Each song on Night Hides the World is well crafted and is the perfect example of a band in their prime. At times the lyrics can be a little far too much focused upon the night and in particular, the moon. However, this isn’t enough to drag down Night Hides the World and although the album is far from anywhere near being a concept album, the moon does seem to be the running theme throughout. That aside, the title track is fantastic as well as the final track, Prophecy, which is a tour de force with Van Hoosen and Boyd trading off guitar solos in an excellent duel, reminiscent of Dave Murray and Adrian Smith from early Iron Maiden. Game of Thrones has been a new recent source of material for a lot of Heavy Metal bands and Spellcaster are no different with The Moon Doors, a place where executions are carried out by throwing the accused to their death through the Moon Door as they plummet from a great height. One of the best tracks on Night Hides the World is the fourth track, Betrayal. A song which begins is a looping bass pattern, almost programmed in a way that serves as the backbone for the song, but from that opening instant, that is the hook in Betrayal and it hypnotically pull you in as the song builds up and up as a track of near 7 minutes, erodes away in what feels like 2:50. Night Hides the World is a great album by a band that just keeps getting better and better. Night Hides the World is a true dark horse in the race for a top 10 slot come the year end and that only serves as a testament to the work and skill that Spellcaster have put into making this album. A very good album indeed. 8/10 Adam Night Hides the World (Spellcaster)
The Ninth Hour Sonata Arctica 2016 Nuclear Blast Records Sonata Arctica are a Heavy Metal band from Finland who play a very symphonic and progressive form of Metal that is instantly identifiable as Sonata Arctica. Having moved further and further away from the original Power Metal sound that defined their first few releases, Sonata Arctica have now come into their own sound, Sonata Arctica are now easily their own animal. The Ninth Hour is Sonata Arctica’s 9th studio album and is the follow up to 2014’s fantastic Pariah’s Child. According to Sonata Arctica, The Ninth Hour contains biblical themes surrounding sacrifices made during the ninth hour, followed by the guilt and remorse felt from this. However, this theme is extended to the state of the world and the decisions made in 2016 that will make us who we are in the future. Stylistically, The Ninth Hour can draw similarities with Pariah’s Child and one of the reasons for this is the solid line-up held by Sonata Arctica over the last few years. Sonata Arctica is composed of Tony Kakko on the vocals, Elias Viljanen and Paso Kauppinen on the guitar and bass with Henrik Klingenberg playing keyboards, leaving Tommy Portimo on the drums. As usual, Sonata Arctica have decide to forsake a producer and do the job themselves. Obviously, this isn’t an issue with Sonata Arctica, they know exactly what they’re doing, what sound they want and as stated above, no one else sounds like Sonata Arctica as they flow between serious social commentary to songs that show a lighter side to the band. The Ninth Hour is heavy on the keyboards, as you would expect from Sonata Arctica, however, the keyboards do not swamp over the mix like in a Melodic Hard Rock release, it all fits perfectly together to make an album that is fun to listen to with orchestrations that are fantastically scored, if you’re a fan of Sonata Arctica, you know what you’re getting. The Ninth Hour begins in typical Sonata Arctica style with Closer to an Animal which sets the tone for the rest of the album dealing with our relationship with the world and in particular to that of nature. As mentioned above, the orchestrations are fantastic on The Ninth Hour, but it is not only this that is melodic, much of the rhythms featured are taken from Finnish folk music and traditional songs. This is mostly prominent in the second track Life, even with the songs particularly feel good clichéd lyrics. Easily the best track on The Ninth Hour is angry deconstruction of how Donald Trump will become the next President of the USA with Fairytale. Once more, Fairytale begins with some fantastic orchestration and it is a huge surprise that Life was chosen to be one of the singles from The Ninth Hour instead of Fairytale. Unfortunately for The Ninth Hour, the orchestrations are that beautiful that they overshadow the actual songs which unlike the previous album, stray into unmemorable and rather boring, the ballads in particular without the orchestrations would possibly be unlistenable. The Overton low whistle played by Troy Donockley of Nightwish practically saves We Are What We Are from being a borderline dirge. It was always going to be a difficult task to follow up Pariah’s Child and unfortunately, The Ninth Hour doesn’t quite hit the mark. However, the album does have some redeeming features, the heavier songs ooze with classic Sonata Arctica, such as Rise a Night and Fly, Navigate, Communicate and as stated above, the orchestrations are something to behold, but The Ninth Hour is far from Sonata Arctica’s best work. 6/10 Adam Life (Kakko)
Decision Day Sodom 2016 SPV/Steamhammer Records Sodom are one of the leading names in the German Thrash Metal movement alongside their peers, Destruction, Kreator and Tankard. These 4 bands shaped what we now know as the Teutonic sound, which took the speed from their American counterparts and turned up the aggression to 11. Sodom are best remembered for their classic Thrash albums, 1987’s Persecution Mania and 1989’s Agent Orange. Decision Day is the 15th studio album by Sodom and is the follow up to 2013’s Epitome of Torture. Stylistically, Decision Day is remarkably close to the previous album and that certainly is not a bad thing as Epitome of Torture was an excellent release. Since 2010, Sodom have maintained a stable line-up consisting of founding member and leader, Tom Angelripper on vocals and bass, long serving guitarist Bernemann Kost and sitting on the drum stool, Makka Freiwald. As stated above, Decision Day is very much in the similar vein to the previous album. Decision Day is produced by Cornelius Rambadt alongside Sodom, Rambadt also produced Sodom’s 2014 EP, Sacred Warpath, Rambadt obviously knows what Sodom wants from an album and delivers just that. Decision Day is aggressive with each instrument being clearly heard in the mix, without the bass or vocals being lost in a quagmire of double bass and distortion. The sound on Decision Day is easily earmarked as Teutonic Thrash, staying true to its roots and refusing to be eclipsed by other current Thrash releases, both from Germany or the USA. Decision Day opens up with a slight fade in before punching you in the face in true Sodom style with the excellent In Retribution. At first, In Retribution can make you shy away with it clocking in at over 6 minutes. However, do not let that put you off, In Retribution is a pounding record that will make you think where that 6 minutes has gone. Following on from In Retribution is the combo attack of the infectious Rolling Thunder with a chorus that will have you humming along before the end of the song. The combo continues with the excellent title track, but it Caligula, the single from Decision Day which steals the album. Caligula is a heavy, brooding piece of Teutonic Thrash, beginning with a bassline that could easily begin a Hardcore Punk song before the inevitable Sodom beat kicks in. Caligula is possibly one of the best Thrash songs this year, let alone one of the best records that Sodom have wrote in a while, especially with the chanting breakdown that is perfectly built for the live environment. The biggest problem with Decision Day is that Caligula is that good of a song, that the rest of the album kind of runs of out steam, with the only other song that doesn’t fade into the background being Belligerence. If we were still in the days of vinyl, side 1 of Decision Day would be fantastic, while side 2 would be rather lacklustre. That aside, Decision Day is a decent album with excellent production by a band that knows what they’re doing, what they’re fan base is and they don’t care about outside pressures. There are much better Thrash albums that have been released this year, however, there are much worse and if you’re a fan of the genre, Decision Day will not disappoint, but it also won’t set the world on fire. 6/10 Adam Caligula (Sodom)
Rapid Foray Running Wild 2016 SPV/Steamhammer Records Running Wild are a Heavy Metal from Germany who play Heavy Metal with historical themes with a focus on pirates, helping to shape the genre that is now known as Pirate Metal. Led by Rock Kasparek, better known by his stage name, Rock N’ Rolf, Running Wild moulded the Pirate Metal genre by releasing the influential albums, Under Jolly Roger in 1987 and its follow up in 1988, Port Royal. Rapid Foray is Running Wild’s 16th studio album, it is the 3rd album since Running Wild reformed and the follow up to 2013’s Resilient. Once more, Rock N’ Rolf has handled all the song-writing and the production, which is nothing new for Running Wild. Rock N’ Rolf sticks to vocals and the guitar whilst in the studio, Runnings Wild’s live band members pitch in. Peter Jordan adds his guitar to mix, with Ole Hemplemann and Michael Wolpers providing the rhythm section with the bass and drums. Rock N’ Rolf has once more done a decent job with the production of Rapid Foray. The entire album sounds as if it wouldn’t be out of place in 1988 with an album drenched in reverb and the prominent use of a drum machine always allows parallels to be drawn with albums of this era such as Ram It Down by Judas Priest. Rapid Foray has the sound of an exceptionally warm album that is very accessible and at times, it is difficult to listen to Running Wild without developing a wry smile. If you have never had the pleasure of hearing Running Wild before, then the opening track on Rapid Foray, Black Skies, Red Flag, gives you a huge taste of what Running Wild are all about. Black Skies, Red Flag is a huge, bombastic song with a big 80’s drum sound, coupled with a catchy chorus that sounds like Judas Priest playing with Biff Byford from Saxon and would obviously appeal to fans of that style. Unlike a lot of their peers in the Pirate Metal movement, Running Wild have always managed to keep their integrity, balancing the pirate style themes without it sounding clichéd by relying on a silly pirate accent or yo ho ho’s and a bottler rum. Instead, Running Wild let the music do the talking, instead of relying on gimmicks and clichés, Running Wild have huge stadium style singalong chorus’ such as By the Blood in your Heart, Warmongers, the title track and Black Bart. Black Bart was chosen to be the single from Rapid Foray and features a chorus that is memorable and will have you humming half way through the first play. Both Black Bart and Into the West feature fantastic twin guitar solos that stray into an almost Celtic feel that gives the tracks a Thin Lizzy on speed feel. Rapid Foray is an excellent shock this year, Running Wild have excelled themselves with a fantastic album that is easily able to stand shoulder to shoulder with their best work and although the name of Running Wild may be lost in the mists of time to younger Pirate Metal fans, Running Wild have released an album this year that shows that they are masters of their craft. You can keep your gimmicks and your bottle of rum, Rock N’ Rolf doesn’t need them to make a brilliant album. 8/10 Adam Black Bart (Kasparek)
Ten Thousand Ways to Die Obituary 2016 Relapse Records For a Death Metal band, Obituary have had a relatively successful career. Hailing from Florida in the USA, Obituary have helped shape the definitive sound of American Death Metal with the seminal releases of 1989’s Slowly We Rot and 1990’s Cause of Death. Obituary officially called it a day in the late 90’s before reforming again in for 2005’s comeback album, Frozen in Time. Since 2005, Obituary have maintained a steady list of releases despite the sad loss of bassist Frank Watkins to cancer in 2015. Ten Thousand Ways to Die is the latest live album from Obituary and features recordings from Obituary’s North American tour in early 2016 as well as two new studio tracks. Just like the previous studio album, 2014’s Inked in Blood, Ten Thousand Ways to Die features the exact same lineup of longtime members, brothers John and Donald Tardy on the vocals and drums as well as Trevor Peres on guitar. Ken Andrews also plays guitar with Terry Butler replacing the late Frank Watkins. Ten Thousand Ways to Die has been produced by Donald Tardy and Peres who have made Ten Thousand Ways to Die exactly as you would expect from an Obituary album. The songs are grinding and heavy with emphasis on the double bass, John Tardy’s vocals prowl in and out with a set list that had obviously been chosen for what is essentially a live greatest hits. For an album that was essentially marketed by Relapse Records as a new Obituary album, Ten Thousand Ways to Die is quite underwhelming. The two new tracks, the title track and Loathe are in all honesty, rather lacklustre and by all accounts, boring. Listening to Loathe at times can be a slog indeed with it being difficult to tell when Loathe ends and Ten Thousand Ways to Die begins with the songs failing to hold your attention throughout. Anyone who caught Obituary live earlier in the year, will understand that they paled in comparison to Exodus, who literally blew them off stage. The set list that was chosen for the live section of Ten Thousand Ways to Die is more or less, give or take a few tracks and different listings, pretty much what was played during each show with Obituary sounding bored and detached compared to the other bands on the bill. The good thing is, this lack of energy doesn’t transpose to the live album and with Ten Thousand Ways to Die, you actually get a decent sounding live album, Tardy and Peres doing a great job with the production. All this aside, Ten Thousand Ways to Die is what it is, it is a live album with two studio tracks as an incentive to purchase the album and unfortunately, Ten Thousand Ways to Die falls into the category of ‘for die-hard fans of Obituary and collectors only’ and if you are neither of these, the answer is simple. Don’t bother. 4/10 Adam Loathe (Obituary)
Agony Nervosa 2016 Napalm Records Nervosa are an Brazilian Heavy Metal band formed in 2010 that play a type of Thrash Metal that can be likened to the more heavier side of the Thrash spectrum, with a style of Thrash that would easily appeal to fans of the Teutonic side with a sound akin to Destruction, Kreator and Sodom. With Nervosa, you can also hear Black Metal pioneers Venom and Brazilian peers, Sepultura. Agony is released on Napalm Records, it is the 2nd full studio release by Nervosa and the follow up to 2014’s Victim of Yourself. Agony features the same line-up as the previous album, Fernanda Lira provides the vocals and bass guitar, Prika Amaral rips it up on the guitar with Pitchu Ferraz battering the drums. True to its Thrash roots, the production of Agony will pull your face off and kick you in the stomach. The production is heavy on the drums and bass creating a deep sound that will have your sub-woofers bouncing, whilst the guitars pierce through the mix with solo’s from Amaral that nod towards Kerry King of Slayer fame or Mille Petrozza from Kreator. Lira’s vocals prowl across each song with themes that show Nervosa’s view about society and the world with a possible view on how Nervosa view their home countries interior politics. Agony does not stray from what you expect, from the blistering opening track Arrogance through to the closing track Devastation. The seventh track on Agony, Hostages was chosen to be the single and it is a piledriver of a song, an excellent social commentary on what seems to be the privatisation of healthcare in Brazil. However, this can be applied worldwide and is a fantastic sardonic view of the world with a chorus that is easy to remember and catchy. For Thrash fans, Agony will be remarkably familiar with Nervosa alluding to their inspirations quite often and it is easy to pick out parts of their songs which sound like their idols, for example Guerra Santa, an excellent song sung in Portuguese, has all the hallmarks of Sodom whilst Theory of Conspiracy wouldn’t be out of place on Reign in Blood, a high accolde indeed. Lira’s bass has a meaty tone which shines brightly on the track Cyberwar, but it is the songs Hypocrisy, Arrogance, Failed System, Hostages and the fantastic Intolerance Means War. The latter is an angry open letter to those who lack respect to their fellow humans, with a chorus that packs firepower matched arm for arm by the rest of Nervosa. Nervosa have delviered an outstanding album and Agony is an exceptional follow up to Victim of Yourself. If you have been lucky enough to catch Nervosa live, then you’ll know that this is what they do, this is their life, they live and breathe Thrash Metal. In a year where the old Thrash Metal guard have released some decent albums, Nervosa show that they can easily keep up with those that inspired them, whilst striking out on their own and making an album that not only keeps up with the masters, but come the end of the year, may even surpass them. 8/10 Adam Hostages (Nervosa)
Hardwired… To Self-Destruct Metallica 2016 Blackened Records/Universal Music Metallica. What can be said about Metallica that hasn’t already been said over the course of their professional career of 33 years? What cannot be denied is that Metallica have been hugely successful garnering a fan-base that is not only rabid at times, but also hugely divided over Metallica’s ability to transcend the years, not being afraid to try something different in an attempt to stay current. Once more, when the rumours circulated of a new Metallica album, the internet became awash with Heavy Metal fans hotly debating what the sound will be like? Should Metallica call it a day? And the perennial, Metallica have been shit since …And Justice for All. But it is was the: “the new Metallica album will be a double album” which caused the most talk. Beware the double album. Hardwired… To Self-Destruct is Metallica’s 10th studio album and is the long awaited follow up to 2008’s Death Magnetic and features a sleeker production that Death Magnetic. Out goes Rick Rubin and in comes producer, Greg Fidelman who was the engineer for Death Magnetic as well as the producer for Lulu, Metallica’s 2011 collaboration with Lou Reed. Fidelman has worked closely with James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich to create Hardwired… To Self-Destruct with a sound that hasn’t been this warm since 1997’s ReLoad. Metallica have finally moved away from the sparse, almost tinny sound that plagued Death Magnetic to an album that is their best sounding in nearly 20 years and the best thing about it is, Lars has finally fixed that annoying snare drum sound. As stated above, beware the double album! Judging on some of the average lengths of Metallica’s previous releases, Death Magnetic, St. Anger and Load, all these push over the 80 minute mark, it was no surprise that it was expected Hardwired… To Self-Destruct to be two discs of this nature. However, the surprise is that each disc hovers around the 40 minute mark with only Halo on Fire pushing over 8 minutes making Hardwired… To Self-Destruct extreme easy to listen to, holding your attention for both discs back to back, quite a feat indeed. Hardwired… To Self-Destruct is a huge surprise, from the most the title track kicks it off, to the closing Damage, Inc. style Spit Out the Bone, Hardwired… To Self-Destruct is a fantastic album. Hardwired… To Self-Destruct floats somewhere between a decent Thrash Metal sound, to a more Metallica inspired Heavy Metal. Several of the songs try to recapture the old magic, Dream No More features the return of Lovecraft’s Cthulu from The Thing That Should Not Be whilst Am I Savage? Continues the werewolf theme from Of Wolf and Man. ManUNkind is a rather odd, but infectious song that may not exactly fit the Metallica cannon, but the almost Black Sabbath type groove gives an insight to what Metallica could’ve sounded like had Pepper Keenan of Down and Corrosion of Conformity joined Metallica instead of Rob Trujillo after the departure of Jason Newstead. Hardwired… To Self-Destruct has been very long in the making, but for the first time since the 90’s, Metallica have finally made an album that they wanted to make without chancing at a different genre or bowing to fan pressure and has possibly been the biggest shock of the year. Hardwired… To Self-Destruct is very good, yes some of the songs aren’t as good as some of the others, Am I Savage? And Murder One are possibly eclipsed by the better songs on the album such as Atlas, Rise! Moth Into Flame and Here Comes Revenge, but Hardwired… To Self-Destruct sounds great and it is good to have Metallica back. 8/10 Adam Hard Wired (Hetfield/Ulrich)
Alliance of Thieves Meshiaak 2016 Mascot Records Meshiaak are an Australian Heavy Metal band formed in 2014 featuring former Impellitteri drummer, Jon Dette and Dean Wells from Teramaze on the guitars. Meshiaak play a type of Heavy Metal that is akin towards Thrash Metal, however, there is more to Meshiaak with rhythms and grooves that can liken them more towards the Thrash end of Groove Metal. Alliance of Thieves is the debut studio album by Meshiaak and other than Dette and Wells, also features Nick Walker playing bass with Danny Camilleri also taking on guitar duties as well as the vocal duties. Meshiaak have a sound that would appeal to fans of Metallica and Slayer, whilst also towards Pantera and the likes of Machine Head. Meshiaak has chosen to produce Alliance of Thieves themselves with guitarist Wells at the helm, supported by vocalist Camilleri. Alliance of Thieves has an absolutely stellar sound with what sounds like big money behind Meshiaak, Alliance of Thieves would easily appeal to fans of Machine Head’s latest output with pounding blast beats, soaring harmonised vocals coupled with a deep melodic growl and twin guitar flurries that even Rob Flynn would be jealous of. The way that Wells and Camilleri have produced Walker’s bass sound to sound dominating and droning, yet melodic at the same time. In fact, the Machine Head influence is very strong throughout Alliance of Thieves and lyrically, Meshiaak stick within these boundaries. Alliance of Thieves is brimming with angry social observations focusing upon war, isolation, human insincerity and the wistful longing for a previous time. However, there are times with Alliance of Thieves where as talented as musicians as Meshiaak are, you can easily draw parallels between Alliance of Thieves and Machine Head’s 2011 album, Unto the Locust. This homage is most prominent in the final two tracks, the title track itself and Death of an Anthem. The former having overtones of the pre-chorus to Locust, whilst the latter is basically saddled with a bass riff that is eerily similar. Being pedantic aside, there are some very good songs on Alliance of Thieves, the opening track of Chronicles of the Dead will pull your face off and give you a huge dose of what Meshiaak are all about, whilst At the Edge of the World shows off Meshiaak’s raw talent with Last Breath Taken allowing Camilleri to deliver his vocals in a way that is reminiscent of Slayer. However, as decent as Alliance of Thieves is, a lot of the songs fail to stick and remain in your memory and it is only with playing the album itself where you can find yourself humming along. Meshiaak do have something on Machine Head though, at least Meshiaak know how to finish a song and don’t drag out a song to its death at 8-9 minutes plus like Machine Head do. Alliance of Thieves is a decent debut and great starting point for a band that sounds well and truly already bedded in. Alliance of Thieves sounds as good, if not better than their peers at times and would definitely appeal to fans of this genre and it will be interesting to see how Meshiaak follow this up. 6/10 Adam Drowning, Fading, Falling (Meshiaak)
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