Black Metal looks to be forming the lion share of reviews for me in the early part of 2023 and it is something to behold. One-man black/thrash metal juggernaut Hellripper (AKA James McBain) announces itself with an early contender for the album of the year lists.
It’s that good.
Bit of background on Hellripper: Active since 2014, they have released several EP’s that were positively received, and they continued in this vein whilst building a live line up that could deliver this music to a wider audience. This is the third album which takes influence from Scottish folklore and history and is released via Peaceville Records, and it is surely to be featured on several ‘best of’ lists come the end of the year.
The Nuckelavee comes straight out of the gate with a statement of intent. It takes from the very root of black metal and just gives it the right spit and thrash with some epic solos that come across like Dave Mustaine in 86. It mixes tempo changes and riff changes without sounding tacked on or they have been written for effect. I, The Deceiver is again, full of fiendishly fast guitar work with some discordant effects going on then back onto the incendiary riffage normally associated with this genre.
Warlocks Grim And Withered Hags, starts with an almost gentle introduction straight into what will be a live classic. It has a feel to it that seems to be associated exclusively with these shores. Closer in approach to Iron Maiden (down at the back) in how an epic song should be built. Epic early solo with a motoring backing and then back into the song proper. This is precision built by someone who is has a clear vision of what he should sound like. Back on the bullet train, with Goat Vomit Nightmare, this rips like early Megadeth in its structure but with an incredibly dark tone and it is absolutely furious.
The Cursed Carrion Crown has THAT scream, oh my god just comes in and the song just takes off. This is just rapid fire but doesn’t lose any clarity. The slower section is still quick fingered and the accompanying solo under and around it is just excellent and then it enters blast beat time. The Hissing Marshes is where McBain is digging deep into his riff bag here, with nods to Metallica and Motorhead but with that black metal filter well and truly applied. Its laser focused on what made each of those and others mentioned unique and then amplified it a 1000-fold.
Poison Womb (The Curse Of The Witch) just continues the incredibly high standard of the songs before it and there is nothing, I can add to it. Somehow the riffs keep coming here on the final song; Mester Stoor Worm and it’s a battle between this and the title track as to what is my standout. I think this just edges it as it takes a dive into Opeth country complete with guttural roar and melodic guitar before coming back into the traditional vocal delivery. Its just excellent and really words do not do this justice at all.
From start to finish it is full of absolute classic takes on this phase of black metal but with a unique spin on it that comes from a strong vision of where he is from. Each of the songs has been crafted to the nth degree and they feel as though he has studied the best that this genre has to offer and said: I can do better. It is an absolute stormer of the highest order. It’s my first 10 score and I never thought that a black metal album would be the one that attained it.
Can I just repeat myself here and say: Please go and get this album in whatever media you like, tape, vinyl whatever. Support it in any way you can because Hellripper are going to be massive. 10/10
Sarcoptes - Prayers To Oblivion (Transcending Obscurity Records)
And I thought that California was the sunshine state? Coming in with their first full length effort, Sacramento natives decide to bring us some dark subject matter.
Coming in at 50 minutes for 5 songs, is this too a big ask to maintain interest? Here the answer is yes, just about. Bearing in mind I am not a fan of overly long songs just for the sake of it but here they manage get over that hill with the first track, The Trenches. With lyrical themes that touch on war, it becomes apparent that they are charting a dead path from WW1 to the 70’s battle fields and the subject matter is serious as its delivery.
Checking online, Sarcoptes are described as black metal but with an American slant which I took as being the faster end of Thrash and this is the case with each of the songs betraying a nod to both genres and taking what are the best bits of each one. Everything is in place and is done as though they are playing out of their skin. Keyboards are used just to add colour when it is needed, and the guitar is clear and crisp with drums prominent in the mix which I think is a massive plus because without that propelling force they wouldn’t hit the same.
The Trenches starts with the sound of a whistle being blown and then the audio equivalent of military bombardment starts. And for the next 14 minutes we are battered as if we are going over the top ourselves. Its fast and then goes faster. Constant blast beats and a wall of noise keeps this going with some absolute frenetic riffing. They don’t make it complicated or too technical, they just make it, so it is memorable and brutal. It just doesn’t stop. Ever.
Spanish Flu, the shortest track here but possesses a real swing to it as it navigates its way through an audio nightmare of just how bad the Spanish flu was. The music fits the narrative. There are some nods back to very early Slayer but played faster. There, I said it. Dead Silence is another long song which just starts fast and then stays there. There are some classic ascending moments and then just straight ahead thrash but without sounding tired or old hat. Keys are again employed sparingly but with a gothic, almost church like sound to them. And then they almost stop to thrown in some proper old school guitar wrangling to then bring the song in to an atmospheric end.
Tet comes next and is taken from the Tet Offensive of 1968 which occurred during the Vietnam war. And it belts out of the traps like a coordinated military offensive where you don’t know what it is happening all around you. This sounds closest to classic thrash, and it reminds me of Silent Scream in terms of the arrangement but just twice as long and just flies past.
Massacre At My Lai, the final track just eases you into battle with a slower progression and nifty pinched harmonics. It then starts to take up a steady tempo as it describes one of the worse atrocities committed during the Vietnam War. I understand that you are not here for a history lesson, nor am I here to give one but this song manages to describe the events in a way that should make you think. It’s a sustained attack that is just one of the best things I’ve heard in a while. 8/10
Märvel - Double Decade (The Sign Records)
This I did not expect. Double Decade is a compilation spanning the last twenty by this Swedish power trio with nine full length albums under their belt. Their online presence calls them the ‘Barons of High Energy Rock N’ Roll’ and that is what this is. It is unashamedly rooted in the hard rock of the 70s but with hints of glam (the heavy bits not the velvet or make-up) which makes each song and its relative influences as something you have heard before. This is in no way a disservice to them as the songs are fresh and possess that quality that makes you want to dance. If you had these booked at your wedding it would be an absolute riot.
Going back to the songs I don’t how much of each album is represented here but what it is an excellent jumping on point for new listeners especially for fans of Hendrix, Cream, Sweet, Deep Purple, The Faces, Thin Lizzy and possibly the Red-Hot Chilli Peppers which really seeps out in this collection. Each one is crafted well and keeps to a general rock blueprint, steady away drums and solo’s that fit each song and are not an exercise in excellence. There are slow ones, fast ones, and in-between ones as you might want from this style of music. It’s delivered in a way that shows they love this music and the fact they can celebrate their influences and what’s more they are spot on. There is also a hint of punk in there which again adds to the heady mix of genres on offer here. Look out for the Iron Maiden bit in Goddess On The Loose…
You can’t but start smiling whilst listening because it is fun collection of songs that just want you to move. On record its good, I bet live it’s something else that would be an excellent night out especially as they keep their identities secret. Its rare for me to really dig on modern rock, I guess it’s because the bands mentioned earlier did it better than everybody else. There are exceptions in the music I listen when it isn’t thrash, death etc and I guess its because those artists somehow say something different, or they represent a period in your life, so you listen to it to maybe take you off somewhere for a while. Märvel are not ripping off these bands, its written through a very focused filter although Son Of A Gypsy has 70’s KISS written all over it.
So, to recap it is a fun collection of songs that sole intent is for you to dance. It is not an artistic statement; it is just rock. Love it. Especially the song Motherfucker. I was going to score it a 7 but then I heard Motherfucker so it’s getting an 8/10
Mortalus - We Are Human (Self Released)
Hello from Little Rock, Arkansas! Home of Bill and Hillary Clinton, Judge Reinhold and Mortalus. We are Human is their second release and are a three-piece who wear their badges of heavy metal on their sleeves. Their socials note that they are power and thrash metal so let’s see what we have.
Can I point out that power metal is not my bag?
Good.
Of the songs here only half of them hit the target, at least in my opinion. I’ll get into that later but offer the following as my justification. And obviously this is my opinion because I’m sure that somewhere someone will love this.
Battle Born has some good riffing with some decent progressions, and the singing has got that Priest edge to it but there is something not quite happening here. Not sure if it’s the drums that are sort of lost here but it affects just how the song should flow and its jarring. Not all the way through but just at certain times. The FiXX suffers in the same way to the first song it has got some good stuff happening and it's ok but doesn’t really shine.
Fearless is again another track where there is an interesting riff kicking us off and then we are into mid-tempo, foot on the monitor metal which is fine except it just seems to be missing something that would give it that push it requires to take it to make it standout. Intended Victim starts to chug, great bass introduction leading us into a great tune with a good hook and vocal line. This seems more like it, double bass, galloping riff and a cool breakdown. Better. Dearest FriEND though is a slow instrumental which doesn’t really go anywhere and slows any momentum built up.
Blood Red Sunset starts like mid 80's Ozzy and continues the good work from Intended Victim, with some impressive vocals that should have been the hallmark of this album which is followed by We Are Human which kicks off with ripping triplets and strong vocals. There is some great guitar on here and it’s a shame that we didn’t see more of it earlier. Then is that what I think it is? Yes, it is. It’s the cover that you didn’t know you needed. I hate Kenny Loggins. So if you are going to cover Danger Zone you must own, it and vocally she just about does it, but the drums seem to get lost again.
On their website a lot is made of vocalist Michelle Gann being a Cat 5 Hurricane when singing and playing guitar, but it doesn’t seem to be captured here. It might be the songs or the production but with power metal I imagined that there would be a lot more of the higher register soaring stuff happening. She is supported well enough with bass and drums, none of which are below par or out of context for each of the songs presented here, it’s just that they don’t go for the throat from the onset. You want it to absolute rip from the start to grab and engage.
It feels as though this could have been an EP instead, especially with the better material starting half-way through. The latter tracks are so much better than the ones that start and they really build upon each other as though they had been written with each other in mind. Had there been more like them then it would have got a higher score 5/10
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