TRACK PREMIERE: Swedish post metallers Siberian offer new live ritual "Axis Mundi"

Siberian is a heavy metal band from Linköping, Sweden whose influences are drawn from the sludge and post-metal scene. Mix it together with their Scandinavian background and you will start to get an idea what Siberian is all about. Uncompromising walls of sound meets melody and melancholia.

Post-metal inspired experimentation with sitars, flutes and bag-pipes. Faintest traces of atmospheric black-metal clashing with cranking moments of hardcore sludge. Jubilant melodies and fiery war drums.

Siberianreleased their debut album 'Modern Age Mausoleum' in 2014. It was the first chapter in Siberian's 'Age trilogy'. The album displayed an Orwellian view of the modern society. After several tour cycles the band started to work with what was going to become their next release.

The band worked with the documentation of all their personal dreams. The material became the foundation of what was to become their second release in the trilogy named 'Through Ages of Sleep'. The follow-up explores the subconscious mind in dreams and is portrayed both sonically and lyrically. The album sees Siberian take a step further sounding more mature and grown up compared to the previous debut. The band have stated in interviews that they shun away from any musical rules and focus only on writing what feels right. Which becomes very clear on the new record.

Since the release the band evolved their musicality and added new members to the group expanding the band from a three-piece to a quintet. Focusing on writing new material with new instruments in the band. Siberian is introducing its new members with a new live EP 'Live at Studio Underjord' set to be released in February 2019 and today you can sample the awesome track “Axis Mundi” below

Band info: facebook

ALBUM REVIEW: The Crown, "Cobra Speed Venom"

By: Daniel Jackson

Album Type:Full Length

Date Released:16/03/2018

Label:Metal Blade Records

After years of struggling to compete with their own legacy, The Crown are sounding inspired and in excellent form again on ‘Cobra Speed Venom’. The barely-contained frenetic energy of the band’s best work are here, and the riffs are, on the whole, more engaging than anything the band has come up with in the last 15 years.

‘Cobra Speed Venom’ CD//LP//DD track listing:

1. Destroyed By Madness

2. Iron Crown

3. In the Name of Death

4. We Avenge!

5. Cobra Speed Venom

6. World War Machine

7. Necrohammer

8. Rise In Blood

9. Where My Grave Shall Stand

10. The Sign of the Scythe

11. Nemesis Diamond (bonus track)

12. The Great Dying (bonus track)

The Review:

The path that has led The Crown to their new album ‘Cobra Speed Venom’ hasn’t been an easy one. After disbanding in 2004 following touring difficulties and frustrations following the previous year’s ‘Possessed 13’, the band’s members found themselves in an uphill battle to come up with an engaging sound in the years that followed. Several new bands, a renaming, and then return albums in 2010 and 2015 saw success to varying degrees, but nothing that quite captured the magic of the band at its peak. ‘Doomsday King’ and ‘Death Is Not Dead’were solid albums in and of themselves, but they understandably fell short of the tremendous standards set by the albums the band released from 1998 to 2002.

After years of struggling to compete with their own legacy, The Crown are sounding inspired and in excellent form again on ‘Cobra Speed Venom’. The barely-contained frenetic energy of the band’s best work are here, and the riffs are, on the whole, more engaging than anything the band has come up with in the last 15 years.

The album’s first single, “Iron Crown”, is the kind of quintessential stormer that was the band’s hallmark during their best years. The death metal on tap here has a lot of the same speed metal sensibility that fueled albums like ‘Hell is Here’ or ‘Crowned In Terror’. That sensibility is even more pronounced on “In The Name of Death”, and it’s a great joy to hear The Crown using that aspect of their sound so well after so many years. And that’s not even mentioning the tremendous guitar solo work as well. Those fiery solos have always been a part of what made The Crown so great, but it’s all the more meaningful when they’re the icing on the cake for songs that are this good.

New drummer Henrik Axelsson fits in remarkably well, considering how deeply rooted Janne Saarenpää’s style had been to The Crown’s musical identity. It essentially makes for a seamless transition, which felt like an impossibility from the outside looking in, back when Saarenpää announced his departure from the band back in 2014.

‘Cobra Speed Venom’ isn’t a perfect return to form, as some of the album’s slower moments still tend to be missing something, but the bulk of the album sees the band firing on all cylinders. It makes for a satisfying redemption story for a band that has struggled to regain their footing. At their best, there’s nothing quite like The Crown. They have a unique musical personality, and it’s wonderful to see that finally shining through again. ‘Cobra Speed Venom’ is an album that would have made me happy as a follow up to ‘Crowned in Terror’ nearly 15 years ago. It makes me even happier now.

‘Cobra Speed Venom’is available digitally here and on CD/LP copy here

Band info: Official Site || Facebook

ALBUM REVIEW: Bhleg - "Solarmegin"

By: Mark Ambrose

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 23/02/2018

Label: Nordvis Produktion

“if you want totally transcendent sacred music, the kind of music that, for good and ill, feels like a field recording of pagan rites, you merely need to tap into the Swedish black metal of Bhleg.”

“Solarmegin” CD//DD track listing

1. Alvstrale

2. Sunnanljus

3. Alyr – Helgedomen

4. Gudomlig gronska

5. Alstrande sol

6. Livslagans flammande sken

7. Kraftsang till Sunna

8. Hymn till skymningen

9. Skuggspel

10. Solvagnens flykt

11. Karleksrit

12. Fro (vaxtlighetens fader)

13. Solens ankomst

The Review:

               

Growing up enmeshed in Catholic belief, you can get a real flavor for the Gothic trappings of ritual.  Frankly, it’s pretty metal when you stumble into the occasional mass that looks like the baptism scene in The Godfather: palpable clouds of incense, pipe organ blaring, a waif singing Ave Maria, and the tortured images of martyrs and messiahs emblazoned in stained glass, marble and gold.  The reality is that most churches now, catholic or otherwise, have gone the Joel Osteen/rad youth pastor route and look like a midlevel convention hall, with modernized “worship pop-rock” to bum you out even harder than the sermons.  Now, if you want totally transcendent sacred music, the kind of music that, for good and ill, feels like a field recording of pagan rites, you merely need to tap into the Swedish black metal of Bhleg.

               

Bhleg’s second full-length, “Solarmegin”, is a grandly romantic, but strikingly naturalist opus of nature-worship.  Sung entirely in Swedish, the 90 minute cycle is as forbidding as any requiem mass, but contains some fundamentally sublime moments, with occasional missteps.  Intro track “Alvstrale” captures the reverence for nature that typifies Bhleg’s output – ambient tones, acoustic fingerpicking, birdsong and folk percussion instruments act as a centering prelude to the harrowing, distorted tremolo assault of “Sunnanljus”.  The rousing gang vocals that occasionally punctuate “Solarmegin” have both a martial and joyous tone – I’m tempted to say “Viking” but it feels much headier than that reductive label.  The mournful tone of tracks like “Alyr – Helgedomen”and “Alstrande sol” only accentuate the emotional dynamics on display; and, with my complete ignorance of Swedish, this is all purely tonal and musical.  But then again I never understood most of the Latin lyrics for church hymns or the Italian (and occasionally German) that formed the structure of most operas, and that never diminished my appreciation for the power behind the words.

               

The major issue at the heart of “Solarmegin”, unfortunately, is the punishing length.  I love delving into a long, enigmatic black metal album, but at 90 minutes, it’s hard to absorb, especially when some of the tracks just feel too long or, in some cases, not up to the same production standards as others.  “Hymn till skymningen” just sounds strangely lo-fi in comparison with the full force, nearly Iron Maiden-esque, bold gallop of “Kraftsang till Sunna”.  “Solvagnens flykt” has a distracting lack of midrange, and “Fro (vaxtlighetens fader)” suffers from a weird midsong rhythm change that doesn’t really work.  These could have been compelling EP tracks later, or been reworked into a second release.  Even the mysterious, folky closer, “Solens ankomst”, goes on just long enough to feel repetitive.  And that’s a real shame because Bhleg are really excellent songwriters and musicians.  There is so much to enjoy here that a few stray tracks can’t diminish my hearty endorsement.  But then again sometimes sacred music is forbidding, difficult, and punishing.  Maybe the duo behind Bhleg is exorcising something beyond my surface reading here.  They’ve certainly captured something unique and moving on this monument to their beliefs, and I’m anxiously awaiting their next journey into transcendent metal worship.

“Solarmegin” is available here

Band info: bandcamp || facebook

ALBUM REVIEW: Agrimonia - "Awaken"

By: Chris Bull

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 26/01/2018

Label: Southern Lord Recordings

'Awaken' is a tour-de-force of genre hopping doom. It should see the band gain ground on their contemporaries and even surpass them.

“Awaken” CD//DD//LP track listing:

1. A World Unseen
2. Astray
3. Foreshadowed
4. Awaken
5. Withering
6. The Sparrow

The Review:

Gothenburg's Agrimoniahave always been a difficult band to pigeonhole; partly epic and expansive doom, partly crusty, blackened death metal, they seem content to don the cap of each of the aforementioned genres whenever the mood is befitting. It should come as no surprise then that 'Awaken', their 4th full length, slithers and writhes with venom and bile in tow.

Opening with the majestic 'A World Unseen', a track that owes as much to Primordial as it does Dissection, Agrimonia put as much into one nine minute epic as some bands do on entire albums. It's an opening statement that implies that further surprises lay ahead...and lay ahead they certainly do; from the Paradise Lost with blast beats of 'Astray'to the haunting melodic intro of 'Foreshadowed'and through its Dismemberstyle death metalisms, there's very little for the casual listener not to enjoy!

The title track sits at the centre of the album and, despite its mesmerising melancholy, and the fact it is a 3 minute instrumental, seems oddly juxtaposed. 'Withering' gets back on track with 13 minutes of captivating death/doom before final track 'The Sparrow' weaves a sombre tapestry before triumphantly galloping headstrong towards the album's shimmering, sobering conclusion.

'Awaken' is a tour-de-force of genre hopping doom. It should see the band gain ground on their contemporaries and even surpass them. For this, you're going to need to pack spare clothes and snacks, for this musical journey is truly epic.

“Awaken” is available to preorder/buy here

Band info: bandcamp || facebook

INTERVIEW: Doom from the Underground with Shadowmaster

By: Aaron Pickford

At the end of 2017, today’s featured band, Shadowmaster and their self titled debut full length was voted the 11^th best underground release by THE SLUDGELORD.  Since July 2017, we selected 13 albums a month that were either released via smaller labels and/or via bandcamp and took it upon ourselves to focus the microscope on those bands and at the end of the year we selected our favourites and Shadowmaster was one of them. 

Following in the footsteps of legendary doom royalty Candlemass and hailing from Sundsvall, Sweden, Shadowmaster are one of latest and heaviest of doom exports, and we talked to the band at the end of 2017, to get the lowdown on the roots of the band and the creation of their devastating new album, which was released via Seeing Eye Records. 

Can you give us an insight into how you started playing music, leading up to the formation of Shadowmater?

Micke (guitar): I guess it all started when we went to high school. We all found out that we shared the same interest in music, so we developed a friendship and started hanging out, both in and outside of school. As time went by we all started playing in various groups based in our hometown Sundsvall, and as our music taste developed with time, Cedermark and I felt that we wanted to play slow and heavy doom, so we started this band called Desert Crone. In the beginning it was a duo, with Cedermark on the drums and me on guitar. We soon realized that the music lacked a certain feel, so we started looking for a drummer. Eventually we called Jimmy and told him that we wanted him, and he gladly accepted. After that we had some gigs, did a short European tour, made an album, changed name to Shadowmasterand here we are!

For those people unfamiliar with your band, are there any bands on the scene past and present that you would use as a reference point bands to describe your band, and who or what continues to inspire you and push you to try new things?

Micke: Well, I’d be a fucking hypocrite if I wouldn’t mention Electric Wizard to start with, as they are the biggest influence (surprise, surprise). But for people who are unfamiliar with us I would mention Monolord, Belzebong, Burzum and Sleep, to name a few. But honestly speaking, I look for inspiration everywhere. We’re talking movies, nature, emotions etc. Obviously heavy music is the greatest influence, but sometimes when I write, I listen to OST-music. It sounds weird, perhaps stupid, but it’s true. There are no limits to our imagination.

What can you tell us about your debut record and where do you feel it sits within the context of current doom scene

Micke: Dark. Heavy. Disgusting. That’s at least our goal with the album. Nowadays there are tons of bands out there, but you are only drawn to a few. We believe that the reason for this is that most people think that you can just pick up an instrument and write slow music, with no feel to it at all. So we think (and hope) that this album is going to be one of those record that people will react positive towards, and not get bored the first two minutes in. We can only wait and see.

Does anything spring to mind when you think about the completion of your new record “Shadowmaster”and how is the mood in the camp at present?

Micke: Well first of all we are just relieved that it’s done, as we worked really hard on the album both in the studio and in the rehearsal room. But in the end we are very pleased with the results so we are feeling great about the completion of the album. We are excited at the moment. The signing with Seeing Red Records feels great, the music is finally going to be released physically and merch is in the making. Now we will focus on playing live so all is good!

What stands out as your overarching memory from the recording sessions?

Micke: The recording of “The Lizard King” went horribly, as I got nervous playing by myself and fucked up more than once. Because off this I wanted to scratch the song, but Cedermark didn’t agree. In the end we got it, but I was pissed at myself. The recording of “Under His Black Skies” was also a moment of aggression. We first failed at the end of the song, so we had to do a second take. As the song is almost 20 minutes and we play everything live in the studio, it was a pain in the ass. But it wasn’t all bad. The vocals went smooth as fuck, and they sound amazing. Plus we had some help by Björn, a close friend of ours. He helped us with everything during the recording session and mixing.

With you new record in the bag, how is your schedule shaping up over the next 12 months?

Micke: Play as much gigs as possible, spreading the word of Shadowmaster and write more music! We already have a lot of ideas for new songs. Releasing the album on vinyl is also something we will try to do as soon as possible. But mostly perform live, since we truly enjoy it. Releasing some merch is also something we will do. T-shirts will be available in a couple of weeks with a design made by none other than Wizard Of Meth (Mephistofeles).

Finally, do you last words?

You can only die once. After that, nothing, and nobody, can harm you.

Band info: bandcamp || facebook

REVIEW: Malakhim - "Demo I"

By: Ernesto Aguilar

Album Type: EP

Date Released: 01/12/ 2017

Label: Iron Bonehead Productions

Rather than retread classic sounds or noisy metal that is in vogue, Malakhim offer a debut that harkens to the best of what you love while introducing you to what it sure to be a new favorite.

“Demo I”CD//DD//LP track listing

1. A Thousand Burning Worlds

2. The Mass of Flesh

3. The Golden Shrines

The Review:

Swedish black metal act Malakhim makes its presence felt with a debut that offers promise in a year filled with rejuvenated black metal performances. "Demo I," a debut EP filled with harsh tones, singing vocals and murky themes, manages to shake off initial iffiness to leave you wanting far more.

There is weird logic in some sectors of extreme music that suggests it is better to simply let the music do your talking and to keep as much of the backstory of the artists behind the scenes. 2017 has been dotted with those acts – bands known by alphanumeric characters, masks or nothing at all. The times it works, it is hard to quibble with success. While this lack of information can be interesting or even mysterious, however, this self-indulgence misses a fundamental part of why people bring musicians, actors or other entertainers into their lives at all: people want connection, stories, mythology and something with which they can identify. It also creates such distinctiveness to music when people understand the artist's process and the context in which the sounds were forged. The world is filled with dozens of legendary acts whose personal trials, circumstances or beliefs formed what they created.

Picking up Malakhim's debut demo, which is shrouded in the mystery that has been a thing this year, you may at once be fascinated by what is a strong first outing. Where it begins to sound like a lot of other black metal or grindcore, you almost crave more detail to appreciate this particular effort past a name that bears little identity.

There are a few bits we know, such as players having been with Swedish black metal bands Wormlight and Ancient Wisdom(not to be mistaken with Austin act Ancient VVisdom). We also know the quintet was formed in 2016. And listening to its debut record, you get a number of influences, including noise, in its black metal sound.

The first recording begins with "A Thousand Burning Worlds," a track that highlights the gifts of the five-piece. Its abrasive rhythms and classic elements make this opener familiar enough to draw you in, but yet unique enough to make you appreciate the density for all it is. A return in metal to more corrosive energy saw a renaissance in 2017, with established and emerging acts like Primitive Man, Septicflesh, Full of Hell and Ledge among those to deliver volume and blasts of guitar far beyond the expected. Malakhim honors that movement from its start and into the song "A Mass of Flesh,"where guitars hammer you repeatedly and the distorted vocals careen over the mountainous drums and bass. The double-ax assault continues into the final cut, "The Golden Shrines."Without revealing much, it is said that Malakhim is a seasoned group, and that experience comes across clearly in both songwriting and maturity in approach. Rather than retread classic sounds or noisy metal that is in vogue, Malakhim offer a debut that harkens to the best of what you love while introducing you to what it sure to be a new favorite.

At just three songs and a shade over 15 minutes, Malakhim'sfirst offering is powerful. What's more, "Demo I" is a spectacular preview to what may assuredly be a legendary 2018 for the new crew.

"Demo I”is available here

Band info: bandcamp || facebook

ALBUM REVIEW: Cities of Mars - "Temporal Rifts"

By: Ernesto Aguilar

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released:29/09/2017

Label: Argonauta Records

Cities of Mars' unique songwriting and evolving musicianship have much to offer to the doom scene

 

"Temporal Rifts" CD//DD//LP track listing

1. Doors of Dark Matter Pt 1: Barriers

2. Envoy of Murder

3. Gula, a Bitter Embrace

4. Children Of The Red Sea

5. Caverns Alive!

The Review:

Sweden's Cities of Marsmay not initially jump out as you as you first listen. As a doom trio mixing in heavy psychedelic overtones and even classic metal melodies in the spirit of Black Sabbathor Uriah Heap, you might just lose them in the traffic of artists traveling similar roads. However, all credit to the band and its label, ever a connoisseur of original musicians, with this self-awareness, and for shaping a concept from start to finish.

Dubbing itself "a heavy band with an integrated storyline," Cities of Mars makes its proper debut this year with "Temporal Rifts,"coming after its 2016 EP, "Celestial Mistress," and two tracks in 2015. However, its collection is all based on the same concept, a broad and ancient conspiracy that is unearthed by Russian KGB cosmonaut Nadia, who lands on the planet Mars as part of a covert mission in 1971. With an assist from Monolord's Esben Willems on production, Cities of Marsoffer promise at an invigorating premiere.

Cities of Marshas gotten comparisons to the band Sleep at points for good reason. Their distorted, stoner-esque orchestration and other flourishes may spark visions of that San Josetrio. Still, Cities of Mars presents a few areas of its own to be excited about.

First and foremost, it is storytelling. You'll have some quick catching up to do if you are not familiar with the tale, because Cities of Mars pitches you right in. Vocalists  Christoffer Norén and Danne Palm together do a respectable job at conveying affairs, which, as you can guess, get fantastical and spaced out. "Envoy of Murder" is a good instance of this. Johan Küchler's drums lead the way as the story comes down to lyrics that feel mirthless in emotion. But in "Gula, a Bitter Embrace," there is a growing determination, as the trio strike a thicker and faster doom rhythm. The arrangement on "Gula" is solid, but feels like it could benefit by being just a bit more compact. However, the eight-minute "Children Of The Red Sea"following it manages a sublime trance into something that feels like truly memorable doom. Gentler chords grow insistent, as the bass swells and vocals float in an otherworldly way against the guitar strings caging it. The composition here harkens somewhat to Below the Sun's spectacular summer release, but Cities of Mars feels bold in its own way.

The album closes with the psychedelic "Caverns Alive!" It follows the same footprint of some other cuts – lighter open, churning build – and yet the band keeps it sounding fresh. Such, however, might be the biggest question for Cities of Mars. Where does a band whose name and music come from a single concept go after this? Space is, of course, infinite. And as you will come to appreciate, Cities of Mars' unique songwriting and evolving musicianship have much to offer to the doom scene. Without giving away the story, fans will have to simply await to which planet this innately discrepant act flies the next light year.

"Temporal Rifts" is available here:

Band info: bandcamp|| facebook

ALBUM REVIEW: Firebreather - "Firebreather"

By: David Jupp

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 13/10/2017

Label: Suicide Records

Firebreather switch between galloped bludgeon, half-time bang and once Mattias Nööjd detonates the riff bombs, unsurprisingly, big ol’ horns occur

“Firebreather” CD//CS//DD//LP track listing:

1). Fire Foretold

2). Emerald Eyes

3). The Ice Lord

4). Release The Lava

The Review:

The manner in which you discover music is important, especially in this era of faceless Spotify playlists and algorithmic recommendations. Through these new channels the romance of discovering a killer band has sadly, to an extent been lost. Be it via a friend lending you his copy of a debut record or perhaps stumbling across a hungry support act at a show, the process of your introduction to music can often amplify your attachment to it.

For me, with Swedish sludge duo Galvano, it was the later. To be specific it was Desertfest 2015 and I was in the Black Heart killing time before Orange Goblin. I noticed a steady stream of beards heading upstairs to the small stage and figured I would see what all the fuss was about. What I was met with at the top of those stairs, was 40 minutes of the best sludge metal I had heard in years. It was brutal of course, but more importantly it was considered, intricate and progressive.

Galvano were a few weeks’ shy of releasing their sophomore triumph ‘Trail of the Serpent.’ So accidentally seeing a band perform, at their zenith, with such a juggernaut of sound was not only exciting but something special. After the show, I legged it to the merch-desk and parted ways with fifteen quid for a distinctly underwhelming and wonkily printed band-tee. This is a testament to how good that show was.

Fast forward almost year and I’ve devoured both ‘Two Titans’ and ‘Trail of the Serpent.’ Galvano are now firmly one of my favourite bands, but there is a deafening silence coming from their camp. Suddenly singer/guitarist Mattias Nööjd announces his new band ‘Firebreather’ and I’m not going to lie, I was gutted. I know it sounds adolescent, but because I had spontaneously followed that beard-highway to the dark, Galvano were my band, they were gone and I couldn’t believe it. I had only seen them once. So, over a year on, it is with trepidation and a hint of sadness that I approach Firebreather’s self-titled debut.

‘Fire Fortold’stirs with blowing winds and a full-fat bass stagger. Seconds later Mattias Nööjd detonates the riff bomb and unsurprisingly, big ol’ horns occur. After another weighty tease from Kyle Pitcher’s bass, Tommy Hanning sets drums to flay and Nööjd’s guttural yell pounds into view. For the next seven minutes Firebreatherproceed to switch between galloped bludgeon, half-time bang and most encouragingly, for any fellow Galvano fans still in mourning, interesting guitar interludes. Track one is an absolute rager.

‘Emerald Eyes’opens with Pitcher and Hanning marinating in a low-end batter. Nööjd rapidly storms in with a descending riff that ominously misses the mark, luckily the verse makes a driving entrance and horns are restored. As the song reaches its peak Nööjd deploys one of his trademark guitar-runs and again the Galvano grief subsides. It’s this ear for melody in the fray that made ‘Trail of the Serpent’such a brilliant record and Nööjd such an impressive guitarist. Whilst it seems like the proggier arrangements from his previous band have been replaced with a more direct approach, it is Nööjd’s ability to inject emotion as well as epicness into a song that set Galvano, and now seemingly Firebreather, apart. As ‘Emerald Eyes’ hits its sixth minute a flicker of musical familiarity kindles in the ear which I will come to later.

Lead single ‘The Ice Lord’ opens with Nööjd’s guitar hammer-on pulling at the reigns. Moments later Pitcher and Hanning’s rhythm-centaur breaks free and the albums stand-out beast hurtles forward. In a genre where tales of war and mythology are so often told, it requires a certain standard of song to not induce eye-rolls. Fortunately, the pace and pummel across ‘The Ice Lord’s six minutes is just outstanding. At minute four as the song flanks left, a slower interlude sees Nööjd roar ‘the oldest vision from this mountain, the eyes fill up the sky, a reign of blood.’ Just as Galvanoknew how to accentuate their heft with the contrast of slow builds so do Firebreather and this ancient imagery sits perfectly in such a titanic outro.

Until now Firebreather have taken a more even and direct approach to arrangement so album closer ‘Release the Lava’s sprawling lurch and climb is a welcome about face. In the songs final third Nööjd’s melodic runs rear their head again, only this time they’re accompanied by Hanning’s nomadic slag-bass. The song forges home on a thunder of half-time riffs, like a fatally wounded warrior desperate to outlast the beast. Adam Burke’s stellar artwork is particularly apt here.

Perhaps it is the romance of not knowing what awaited me atop those stairs back in 2015, or maybe it’s the marauding arrangements Galvano affixed to their riffs. But for whatever reason I had never noticed the striking similarity between Mattias Nööjd and Matt Pikes’ vocal. Much like Matt Bellamy of Muse’s breathing, it is something that once heard, is impossible to forget, and it’s only accentuated by Nööjd’s narrowing of the space between Firebreather and High on Fire’s sound. The question is if it matters?

For me that aspect of familiarity glimmers throughout the record but at no point does it feel like pale imitation. I can imagine that this is an issue that will be ignored or emphasised by previous exposure to Galvano. Firstly, any comparisons to High on Fireare always a compliment but more importantly for the Galvano fans amongst us, it is their ghost that flickers in the heart of this record. Luckily, it just a flicker as Firebreather’s debut bludgeons to its own beat.

I am sure that somewhere soon, a riff-nerd will look up from his beer and instinctively follow the beards. Up the stairs, into the darkness and on, to a killer new band: Firebreather.

“Firebreather” is available here

Band info: facebook