Urban Death "Abstention" EP Review

    At the onset of 2023 the devastating hardcore infused death metal duo Urban Death would release two very overlooked ep's in Desolate and Devastate ever since then the band have been working dilligently behind the scenes to deliver an even more devastating and fuller sound,this has come to fruition with their third ep Abstention ,also the addition of a lead vocalist and bass player is a huge contributing factor to the quality on offer with this excellent output.

   Commencing proceedings is the haunting intro of the title track Abstention ,combining a very gloomy atmosphere and a spoken word dialogue that talks about societal probelms that create a subtle dystopian aura, Dead in the Water delivers crushing blows like a sledgehammer while combining death metal vocals with lacerating riffs ,the backing vocals are vile and give a nasty element to the track, the broad range of multiple vocals on Concrete Vial create an obliterating and crushing wall of souind that has plenty of hardcore style breakdowns ,the brief spoken word interlude just after the halfway point implements that dystopian atmopshere that was present on the intro.

   The short sharp shock of the relentless Liar  is an absolute audio assualt on the senses,something that becomes apparent(if you've listened to the previous ep's) is the addition of a lead vocalist gives the guitarist and drummer freddom to implement extremely visceral backing vocals which adds a whole new atmopshere to the bands overall sound, this becomes even more noticable on possibly my favourite track on this release Glad there's a killer groove and breakdown that hints at a modern hardcore element ,maybe this is a thing the band will explore more in the future, closing track Blind combines black metal and shouting hardcore vocals all layered behind those devastating gutturals ,once again this shows no let up in pace and shows the band exploring a broad range of elements that most likely be better on future releases.

  Abstention shows a massive step up in quality from the band ,the addition of a lead vocalist and bassist has really helped with this and added a whole new dimension to the bands overall sound,although previous releases were excellent for that era of the band this really blows it out of the park,prepare for a new level of devastation from this really interesting band,i for one am looking forward to see what sort of output Urban Death show us in the not too distant future.

RATING: 8/10

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Immaculate Deception "The Beat Of The Craw" Album Review

  

  Crossover Punk/Metal veterans Immaculate Deception are possibly one of the oldest bands within the Irish Punk(& Metal) scene,founded by the legend that is Declan Caffrey way back in 1982/83 under the moniker of Dreamcreeper,he set upon creating some of the filthiest and heaviest form of Punk known in existence,influenced by bands such as Discharge, Motorhead and Slayer with social and political themes part of the subject matter lyrically all delivered with a F**k You attitude, for years "Caff" has written some fantastic tracks but for various reasons never saw the light of day until midway through 2023 with the release of the bands absolutely facemelting debut album The Beat Of The Craw.

  Launching straight into the  rip roaring title track Beat Of The Craw plenty of rawness, an overload of speed and subtle rock n roll hints ala Motorhead,there's also a rebellious element to the track, War On The Streets opens with a beautifully crafted lead that has a lot of feeling and emotion in it before you're hit upside the head with a relentless barage of razor sharp riffing, you can hear the Slayer influence throughout this song with alot of the riffing while the drumming sounds similar to the likes of Discharge, those wailing Guitars on the intro to A Lesson In War are ridiculously vicious and set the tone for an absolute cacophony of filthy heavinesss,the rawness of the vocals add a really gritty and angry element to proceedings like some anti-hero preaching for the disadvantaged and downtrodden and a middle finger to authority,as soon as those sirens hit on Spoils Of War you known there's going to be loads of elements of unrest and civil disobedience, the drumming goes into relentless D-Beat territory and the constant switching between mid paced heavy riffs and the trademark relentless speed is nothing more then perfection, Driven To Hell  while extremely raw has a lot of Melody and Harmonics with the riffing and vocals while still maintaining that aggressiveness and anger throughout.

   the subtle element of groove at the start of No Masters,No Slaves adds another perspective to the overall delivery of the album,as you can guess lyrically the rack is about those in authority are condemned for thinking they're above or better then everyone else and society will teack them a lesson in humility, therefore the rules will be broken, the drum intro on Exiled to Armageddon raises the bar to another level with regard to the absolute relentlessness  throughout this releases,at times it almost feels energy draining to take in the sheer speed of this release and i mean that in the best possible way, once again there's subtle homages to Slayer with the  haunting intro to Profession Of Promiscuity once the trademark speed kicks in you'll be thinking you're listening to similar style riffs and guitar tone to Reign In Blood then things get even more explosive with yet more relentless barage of filthy riffing ,this is possibly one of the nastiest guitar tones i've heard in a long time especially when the lead kicks in, Chemical Warfare is the shortest track on the album and has plenty of Punk elements throughout while still having that filthy guitar tone,this has all the elements for getting a moshpit going, closing track 213(The Gateway To Hell) goes into serial killer territory as some may know this is referncing Jeffrey Dahmer,the song has a really haunting atmosphere with it's slowish riffing and gritty vocals, which gives the overall proceedings something different then previous tracks, amore then suffucient way to close out a phenomenal album.

  Not only was the long wait to hear all these tracks worth it,this body of work is a commendation of years of graft,struggle and to get something truly worthwhile out to the masses, if you're into the likes of Discharge,Slayer or Motorhead this album is a must listen,every track is full of quality and upon numerous listen to this offering you'll find it hard to forget these tracks,they say you can't teach an old dog new tricks but the old dog will teach you a trick or two on how to write truly quality Crossover D-Beat/Thrash Metal songs .Immaculate Deception have unleashed an absolutle unforgettable masterpiece with The Beat Of The Craw.

RATING: 9.5/10

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Hero In Error "Hero In Error" EP Review

   Dublin Hardcore/Metal Stalwarts Hero In Error have been tearing it up since 2007 with consistently quality releases and a plethora of live shows supporting luminaries such as Mastodon,Parkway Drive and more,despite a few line up changes and two hiatus's from 2013 to 2016 & 2020 to 2024,the addition of Kaan Tasan(Heart Of A Coward) on vocals gave the band a renewed vigor and another level of quality ,all of this culminates with the release of their absolutely monumental new Self Titled EP, let's dissect the finer details within this release.

    Instantly you know you're about to delve into something special when that first chord hits on Enemy Within the vocal delivery is both gut wrenching and full of angst combined with some thought provoking lyrics of self doubt and the struggle to communicate your true feelings, Moths To a Flame delivers some  really fantastic groove laden hooks with relentless drums ,the switching between clean and abrasive vocals adds a really melancholic atmosphere to the overall theme of personal struggle.

  Closing track Left In Your Absence goes into even more emotionally tinged  territory with the delivery of both extremely aggressive and emotiinally charged vocals,it feels like there's a gradual build within each song to the point where the emotions become too difficult to cope with and they eventually explode into an uncontrollable anger.

  Hero In Error may have been absent from the scene for a prolonged period of time but upon listen to this phenomenal EP it feels like they've never been gone ,they've even come back with a renewed purpose and intent all designed to deliver absolutely crushing and thought provoking passages,

RATING: 9.5/10

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Frayed Ends "Belfast HC" EP Review

      Frayed Ends offer an absolutely relentless short sharp shock with their obliterating debut EP Belfast HC, the band combine elements of Crust,D-Beat,NYHC with an unrelenting aggression and punch to the gut,we're treated a fercious 4 tracks in 11 minutes of  raw,angry unrelenting fury with a few guest appearance along the way.

  As soon as that first notes of Carve Your Name hit you can hear all the nuances of NYHC like Leeway,Sick Of It All,Cro-Mags and even elements of early Biohazard,the dual vocals throughout this track(along with the whole EP) add a really visceral and nasty feeling to proceddings, Came Into This World dissects and obliterates with crushing precision and the urge to make you smash the place up, No Shift In The Paradigm (Ft Brian J Harrington of Congenital Abnormalities,Ex-Jenova Vocalist) on Guest Vox gives an absolutely Obliterating persistence to the track ,that breakdown near the end is nothing short of devastatingly crushing, Worthless (Ft Jude McIlwaine of Acid Age) is an absolutely ripping track ,the trademark wretched screams of McIlwaine give the track something unique and different to what was on the EP already while still maintaining the unrelenting fury.

   Overall Belfast HC is an absolutely quality offering from the band especially considering it's a debut,it is obvious that the members have a wealth of prior experience to draw on from the past even so this makes this EP all the more better for it,dare i say it this may well make my short list for EP of the year,yes it is a bold statement to make but it's going to be hard to match the overall ferocity,aggression and rawness on offer here.

Rating: 9.5/10

   

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