Browsing Tag

Pantera

HeadWar has another hit in their grunge-punk arsenal with ‘Ladders’

Posted on 19 October 2023

With their sophomore EP, Bled Dry, the Madison Wisconsin prodigal sons of grunge punk HeadWar forcibly occupied the middle ground between Fugazi, Nirvana and Pantera and took no prisoners.

The self-described icons of awkward exceeded themselves with the catatonic furore which unfurls through every fortified with catatonic contempt progression in their most seminal single to date, Ladders, which is a cutting with razor-sharp lyrical position exposition on the need to socially climb.

The monolithic breakdown which bursts into a riff that would even leave Slayer fans weak at the knees is the ultimate affirmation of the technical skill of the powerhouse, which is otherwise disguised by the speed of the time signatures and lashings of distortion which lends itself effortlessly well to the lyrical lamentation.

Stream the Bled Dry EP by heading over to Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Abyssal Voyage – Step: Nu-Metal As You’ve Never Known It Before

Posted on 26 September 2023

After swinging onto the airwaves with their debut single, Time, in June the Floridian five-piece, Abyssal Voyage, has amplified their eclecticism by unveiling their multifaceted beast of a sophomore rock-metal mash-up, Step.

With angularly cold lead guitars that throw you all the way back to when Korn held dominion over the alternative scene around the Pantera reminiscent aggression in the verses, the choruses were the perfect opportunity to impale the track with razor-sharp hooks that give the track infinite earworm appeal. In the same way Grohl can orchestrate melodic vocal hooks that will stick to your synapses like superglue, Abyssal Voyage know just how to infuse addictive fixtures to their furore-driven sound.

The resurgence of nu-metal is becoming increasingly impossible to ignore; if any powerhouse has what it takes to turn the new generation of metal fans onto it, it is Abyssal Voyage with their unique take on nu-metal motifs.

Step was officially released on September 16; stream it on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

New Zealand powerhouse Thess have made a monolithic hard-rock return with ‘Kombakke’

Posted on 11 March 2023

If Coal Chamber, Deftones, Alice in Chains, Mushroomhead and Pantera were placed in a smouldering sonic pot, the simmering amalgam would groove in the same hard-rock vein as the latest single from the Nelson, New Zealand-hailing fourpiece, Thess.

After a recording hiatus, the monolithically hard-hitting powerhouse released their brand-new single, Kombakke; and there’s the promise that there is plenty more in the pipeline from the criminally underrated act, which more than has what it takes to send ripples through the industry that are powerful enough to move tectonic plates.

The extended single melodically pulls you through a myriad of progressive stylistic exhibitions of the band’s dynamism – never allowing you to get complacent with the ever-transitory rough rancour that efficaciously delivers catharsis to anyone on the same pissed-off page.

Kombakke was released on February 14th. Hear it for yourselves by heading over to Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

BackIVBlood – Cuts: Cowboys from Cwmbran

Posted on 24 January 2023

The recently forged South Wales metal three-piece, BackIVBlood, is laceratingly sharp in their debut single, Cuts. With elements of Pantera, Drowning Pool and Static X all legible in the adrenalized off-kilter ride through their progressive furore, it’s impossible not to get sucked into their grungy alt-metal antagonistically cathartic antics.

The caustically sharp vocals rail across the consistently evolving instrumentals that lustfully flirt with nu-metal in the rhythm section, stylise the ferocity with dynamic hard rock guitar licks and add nuanced layers of industrial metal to the fresh production, which unravels as an amalgam you’ve never tested the capacity of your neck with before.

Based on this exceptionally promising debut alone, the juggernautical powerhouse can count on me to be at the front row on their future tour dates.

Listen to Cuts on Spotify and YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Angils delivered a stellar slice of progressive metal with their latest single, Drowning.

Posted on 1 January 2022

‘Drowning’ is the latest melodic metal single from the arrestingly talented alternative artist, Angils, who puts their own sludgy signature spin on the genre – to an atmospherically enticing effect.

With nuances of grunge in the harmonised vocals before they break into visceral, guttural angst, the progressive nature of the consistently unpredictable track keeps you hooked from start to finish. From grungy reminiscences to Alice in Chains to angular instrumental interludes to straight-up Pantera-Esque aggression, Drowning definitively offers it all. If the metal scene continues to sleep on Angils, they may as well be in a cultural coma.

It isn’t every day that we discover an artist whose instrumental ability is on par with their immersive songwriting prowess. We can’t wait to hear what follows.

Drowning was officially released on December 30th; you can check it out for yourselves via YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

INSiGHT deliver a damning depiction of the socio-political climate with ‘THiS is AMERiCA’

Posted on 21 December 2020

Opening up with the powerful statement that ‘last year, 39,603 people died from gun violence in the USA’, ‘THiS is AMERiCA’ is a powerful indictment of gun culture and bloodshed from the California-based metallers INSiGHT. Once a six-piece, and now effectively the solo-project of multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Dave, INSiGHT drive hard-hitting, hard-riffing metal in the style of Machine Head, Pantera, Metallica, or the late, great Randy Rhoads.

Grinding and thundering like another sadly-lost guitar hero, Dimebag Darrell, Dave’s guitar tone is all heavily-scooped gain-cascaded chug and grind, the vocals alternately nonchalant and angry, mumbled or growled over rumbling bass and heavy blast-beat drums. It’s a potent mix, the angry, disbelieving message of the track made all the stronger by the stomping grind of the riff, like Pantera’s ‘Walk’ or Machine Head’s stunning ‘Davidian’. Boosted by the potent animated lyric video, ‘THiS is AMERiCA’ is a strong introduction to INSiGHT’s forthcoming album ‘GEMiNi: The Light And The Dark’.

Check out ‘THiS is AMERiCA’ on YouTube, and follow INSiGHT on Facebook and Instagram.

Review by Alex Holmes

Mysterious ‘Ortaka’ simmers the pot with moody & masterful Electronic ‘’Last City Of England’’

Posted on 31 May 2020
https://soundcloud.com/ortaka/last-city-of-england/s-kLoLr67GRWt?in=ortaka/sets/tinku/s-ZaGfJBuEOtX

Love the leader, love the leader. Buckets of blood. You get the idea. This is a moody masterpiece really, with it’s dark undertones and badass beat. I feel like I’m in a video game, somehow trapped but finding ways out. This music is so trippy but I like it.

‘’Last City Of England’’ is the lead single off the new 2nd album by Ortaka, continuing to explore an eclectic range of influences and techniques, songs and instrumentals. He describes his music as Indie Rock/ Electronic and I feel like it should be called Ortaka music. 

This is really fascinating music and the full album is set for release on 29th May 2020. Instrumentals, drum and bass to noise rock influences are a plenty here. I would love to jam out with good friends like my buddy Dan to this as he’s such a huge drum & bass fan. 

I like the ruggedness of the ‘Orteka’ creations and I can’t quite work it all out. Perhaps that is the point, you aren’t supposed to. Just enjoy it and listen at a very high volume. 

This is an artist not to be ignored so click here on the SoundCloud link and be amazed.

Reviewed by Llewelyn Screen

Crisis King – Tonight – If You Thought That Extreme Music Could Not Be Eclectic, Think Again!

Posted on 3 November 2017

Crisis King is an artist with a fondness for hard-hitting metal, post-hardcore and industrial tones. His recent studio work, Tonight, is an EP that features 6 original songs. The artist’s music explores genres as diverse as hardcore, industrial, new-metal and more, going for an eclectic, yet direct sound. Opening number, “Die Easy”, is an extremely powerful wall of sound that feels like a stampede of vikings, crushing and burning everything in their path. The song has powerful drums and loud guitar riffs that are down-tuned and aggressive, perfectly matching the vocals.

The dark lyrical themes on the songs of the EP are also a great match with the album’s production aesthetics, but there is also room for melodies here and there.

“The Tides” highlights the group’s most melodic side, yet it still features hard-hitting drums, loud guitar walls and serendipitous changes. Throughout the span of these 6 tracks, Crisis King really stand out for the diverse approach they are able to bring to the table, exploring different sides of their musicianship and offering up an EP that feels eclectic, yet extremely direct, just as you would expect from a band such as Crisis King!