Death metal seems to be divided recently into the modern deathcore slanted extremity and the dirtier, filthier variety produced by bands like Hail Of Bullets amongst others. The war defined terror of their debut ‘…Of Frost And War’ was a terrifying ordeal and this new EP shows the band are not a proverbial flash-bomb in the pan. Taster EP’s can often be a rather hodgepodge of material but here the band have created two new songs, a cover and three live songs that all sit very well within their parameters.
‘Liberators’ is a down tuned nightmare with a rasping riff and chest stomping rhythm section as the bass threatens to crush you into a bloody pulp. Van Drunen’s bark is as menacing as ever; his voice is unique within the death metal genre. ‘Warsaw Rising’ opens with a tank like double bass kick flattening as the barbaric riff tears you in two. The cover of Twisted Sister’s ‘Destroyer’ surprisingly fits exceptionally well with the two new tracks and creates a nice link with the live tracks. The vocal terrorising of Van Drunen fit perfectly with the slow methodical crunch of the track, albeit with a sound sunk deep into the mud.
The live tracks start with ‘Red Wolves Of Stalin’ a fairly lengthy track, for this subgenre, and given that the sound at Party San is formidable to say the least the sound emanating from this band must have been immense based on my past experiences of this fest. Every single aspect of the song is clear; the crushing bass sound, the rasping vocals and the filthy guitar sound. Oh and the drums are equally dense and thudding thankfully and not a tinny shallow mess. It’s also nice to hear a bit of crowd chant in the mix, something that bands tend to forget with live stuff these days. The mid section in this song is just terrifyingly savage but fantastic for it. Personal favourite ‘Nachthexen’ is next and as you would expect there is no let up in ferocity, especially when the drum demolition comes in. The song offers very little in the way of finesse, just pure pulverising death metal. The EP finishes with ‘The Crucial Offensive’ and suffice to say the song is utterly brutalising. A nice taster for a soon to come second full length I hope this has been put together with plenty of thought.
http://www.myspace.com/hailoffuckenbullets
http://www.hailofbullets.com
