Portsmouth rockers Brave Rival come roaring back with their new EP of swaggering, sultry rock n roll that gives some Heart on Poison with the killer vocals of Lindsey Bonnick backed by some shouted background "heys", while they phase into the bluesy balladry of Zep on Try Again, the opener Let Me Rock 'n' Roll has the fuzzy riffage of The Black Keys with a gutsy heavy rock style.
The EP comes from the fact that the band are now a foursome, so they have gone from five to four. With Lindsey on vocals joined but drummer Donna Peters, guitarists Ed ‘The Shred’ Clarke and bassist Billy Dedman, but without an extra member they lose none of their potency. If anything this EP shows that they are a leaner, meaner act.
Adding a modern rock sheen of a band such as Halestorm on Control while Wild Child definitely gets the groove going again. It's a whole new era for Brave Rival, shorn of a member but fired up with some top quality new music, and three acoustic versions as well.
If this is precursor to a new full length album as a fierce four piece then I for one will be expecting big things! 8/10
Malota - Scapegoat (Go Down Records)
The second record from Italy's Malota comes on Italian label Go Down Records opens with some Rob Zombie like roaring at the beginning of Clemency the only song where drummer Roberto 'Mariuz' Mariuzzo takes lead vocals and the band instil their sense of dread and isolation from the opening moments.
Scapegoat brings a darker more visceral sound with this album forgoing the rock style of their previous releases for a much heavier, metallic sound, the rougher edge of Max D'Ospina's vocals coming from the stoner style while he thunders on bass, he's also got piano, didgeridoo to add to his repertoire and the broad sound of album two.
Things take a heavier turn again on But Deliver Us From Pain, where Fabio Favaretto brings some visceral growls against a sprawling haunting atmosphere, the idea of suffering is preeminent on Scapegoat, the complexity of human relationships, and the uncertain and violent times we live in, but tracks such as In A Common Have are driven by the riffy guitars of Alberto Montagner and Massimo Battistella.
I'd not heard anything by Malota before but this is a dark stoner record that shifts Malota into a different realm. 7/10
Birdwitch - Bless The Spark That Found Its Home (Self Released)
Self-Described as a band that plays 'dream violence' band, I wasn't to sure what to expect when the band approached us about reviewing this record but yeah it's very much a bit of me.
They come from Norwich and blend doom, shoegaze, post-metal, prog and black metal, drawing them comparisons to bands such as Oathbreaker, Converge, Emma Ruth Rundle and Faetooth. The band channelling all their anger, hurt and frustration through Raya-Mhari Iglesias Beattie, part ethereal wanderer, part possessed demon, the vocals used as catharsis for the heavy lyrical content of these four tracks.
With the duality of Raya-Mhari's vocals upfront the music is just as dynamic, from the dreamy beginnings of Stumbled, where the synths of Grant Mackay weave through the swirling rhythm section of bassist Tim Burden and Kieron Larcombe. Mackay and Jade Kelly switch on the distortion for their guitars, and the vicious vocals come in. Going through Starling, the heavy remains with post-metal blasts, while on Disingenuous, they begin with the ambient elements they bring through all of their music.
Then the heavy comes back in again at the end of this track and with the extreme prog metal brutality of Section 21 which closes this emotional and deeply personal ritual. Bless The Spark That Found Its Home is an excellent EP from Birdwitch and deserves your attention. 8/10
Amnesiak - Arkfiend (Self Released)
Gothic doom duo Amnesiak deliver their debut album called Arkfiend. The London band consist of composer/multi-instrumentalist/producer Francesco Fonte and composer/lyricist Grace Wilson, both take vocals and while the performances are decent from both of them across these seven doomy tracks.
One of which is a cover of Jefferson Airplane's White Rabbit, but the songs all carry a similar tone that makes it all sort of a blur or goth and doom, never really changing too much other than the way the vocals are delivered. As much as I wanted to like this record but I found it just a little samey for my taste. 6/10
If this is precursor to a new full length album as a fierce four piece then I for one will be expecting big things! 8/10
Malota - Scapegoat (Go Down Records)
The second record from Italy's Malota comes on Italian label Go Down Records opens with some Rob Zombie like roaring at the beginning of Clemency the only song where drummer Roberto 'Mariuz' Mariuzzo takes lead vocals and the band instil their sense of dread and isolation from the opening moments.
Scapegoat brings a darker more visceral sound with this album forgoing the rock style of their previous releases for a much heavier, metallic sound, the rougher edge of Max D'Ospina's vocals coming from the stoner style while he thunders on bass, he's also got piano, didgeridoo to add to his repertoire and the broad sound of album two.
Things take a heavier turn again on But Deliver Us From Pain, where Fabio Favaretto brings some visceral growls against a sprawling haunting atmosphere, the idea of suffering is preeminent on Scapegoat, the complexity of human relationships, and the uncertain and violent times we live in, but tracks such as In A Common Have are driven by the riffy guitars of Alberto Montagner and Massimo Battistella.
I'd not heard anything by Malota before but this is a dark stoner record that shifts Malota into a different realm. 7/10
Birdwitch - Bless The Spark That Found Its Home (Self Released)
Self-Described as a band that plays 'dream violence' band, I wasn't to sure what to expect when the band approached us about reviewing this record but yeah it's very much a bit of me.
They come from Norwich and blend doom, shoegaze, post-metal, prog and black metal, drawing them comparisons to bands such as Oathbreaker, Converge, Emma Ruth Rundle and Faetooth. The band channelling all their anger, hurt and frustration through Raya-Mhari Iglesias Beattie, part ethereal wanderer, part possessed demon, the vocals used as catharsis for the heavy lyrical content of these four tracks.
With the duality of Raya-Mhari's vocals upfront the music is just as dynamic, from the dreamy beginnings of Stumbled, where the synths of Grant Mackay weave through the swirling rhythm section of bassist Tim Burden and Kieron Larcombe. Mackay and Jade Kelly switch on the distortion for their guitars, and the vicious vocals come in. Going through Starling, the heavy remains with post-metal blasts, while on Disingenuous, they begin with the ambient elements they bring through all of their music.
Then the heavy comes back in again at the end of this track and with the extreme prog metal brutality of Section 21 which closes this emotional and deeply personal ritual. Bless The Spark That Found Its Home is an excellent EP from Birdwitch and deserves your attention. 8/10
Amnesiak - Arkfiend (Self Released)
Gothic doom duo Amnesiak deliver their debut album called Arkfiend. The London band consist of composer/multi-instrumentalist/producer Francesco Fonte and composer/lyricist Grace Wilson, both take vocals and while the performances are decent from both of them across these seven doomy tracks.
One of which is a cover of Jefferson Airplane's White Rabbit, but the songs all carry a similar tone that makes it all sort of a blur or goth and doom, never really changing too much other than the way the vocals are delivered. As much as I wanted to like this record but I found it just a little samey for my taste. 6/10
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