If you’ve been in despair over the recession, you can at least take comfort in the fact that the turmoil is breeding some damn fine music. Old hands like Kreator released a stonker at the start of this year, and as we rapidly head towards 2010, they keep stacking up. Added to the mound of discs currently giving ‘Best of 2009’ list compliers food for thought is ‘Last Dance Before Doomsday’.

Like their peers and current tour mates Cinders Fall, Red Mist have have opted for an EP rather than album, and it does an excellent job of whetting the appetite. Perhaps a little too well; when the last strains of ‘Crack Addict Logic’ fades into nothing, you’re left with an overwhelming urge for more. Between that point, and hitting play for the first time, your ears are treated to metal most limber. Opening track ‘Descent Into Chaos’ showcases their ability to turn on a six pence, with vocalist Gibbzy calling on a wide array of grunts, growls and screams to propel his bandmates’ musical backing into the stratosphere. ‘Devil With Angel Wings’ continues along much the same themes, sounding like the centerpoint between their influences DevilDriver and Machine Head’s recent output, while the changeovers in ‘War Drums’ between the breakdown and the monstrous groovy riffs are so sleek they make the bodywork of a Ferrari look lumpen. And while the aforementioned closer ‘Crack Addict Logic’ brings things to an end all too soon, along the way you’re treated to such a stunning array of brutal riffs you barely notice the six minute running time. Let’s just hope the next time we something of this ilk from Red Mist, it’s acting as the halfway point of a full length album, and not just a bold statement of intent.

http://www.myspace.com/redmistuk

Steve Jones

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