Scotland

Man Must Die, The Pain Behind It All (Distortion Music Group 2023)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , , ,

Man Must Die return with a vengeance on their fifth album, The Pain Behind It All.

Now entering their third decade, Man Must Die originated in Scotland. They got rolling with a solid take on technical death metal at the beginning, and set off on a fairly linear trajectory, releasing three memorable albums in a row, Start Killing… (2004), The Human Condition (2007), and No Tolerance for Imperfection (2009). Time and events colluded to tilt the ground and there was a patch of dicey territory for a while. Even in the trying times, the band released Peace Was Never an Option in 2013. Things have been relatively quiet since then on the recording front, save for the terse EP Gagging Order (2019), until now. On The Pain Behind It All, founders Joe McGlynn (vocals) and Alan McFarland (guitar) are joined by James Wright (bass), Mike Allan (guitar), and Tony Corio (drums) for another raging round of metal.

After an intro windup, there are eight primary tracks on the album, plus a transitional piece. First up, “Patterns in the Chaos” – a song filled with not only aggression but also raw anger. An affront to your senses, the music is like being hit by a battering ram that has barbed spikes on the front of it. The title track follows, taking the tempo down a notch but doing nothing to mute the attitude. The metal here is more grinding, using the weight of misery to crush you. “In the Hour Before your Death” is a blistering head-turner that howls and cracks. It offers ravaging percussive elements interchanged with staccato ratcheting and moments where some might even hear a groove. The song runs a range, and no mistake.

The album is a speedy form of technical death metal in the main, with plenty of sideshows and alternate paths. “Enabler,” for example, paints an elegant, lyrical movement between the attacks, and “War is My Will” takes an almost epic posture and tone. The beautifully sad and serene instrumental “Alone in a Crowded Room” takes a sinister turn to set up the end song, “Who Goes There? / I.F.F.,” a fittingly brutal finish to a fantastic album. Recommended.

The Pain Behind It All is out on Friday, February 17th through Distortion Music Group. Have a look at the links below.

Links.

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/ManMustDie/

Distortion Music Group, https://www.distortionmusicgroup.com/

© Wayne Edwards

Man Must Die, The Pain Behind It All (Distortion Music Group 2023)

Robot Death Monkey, Intergalactic Party Powder (2022)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , , ,

Scotland’s Robot Death Monkey slap down another irresistible slab of metal on Intergalactic Party Powder.

For a dozen years now, Robot Death Monkey has been ruffling feathers in the stoner metal world. In a good way. They have released a string of fierce EPs, including Booze Cruise (2015), Big Pussy (2019), and Druid Odyssey (2021). The music is heavy groove metal with a rock and roll propulsion that you can’t get enough of once you start listening. The band is Shaun Forshaw (bass, vocals) Sam Forshaw (drums), Alan Travers (guitar), and Fraser Lough (guitar).

“Bantha Rider” has a great punch. The song structure does put me in mind of Clutch, but the music is much more metal, maybe in the Orange Goblin direction. Great riffs, great pound. The lead guitar solo is fantastic. It is an instrumental heavy metal feast. “Asgardian Micro Whitey” is another rambler, and our first clear listen to Forshaw’s vocals, which are rugged and declarative. The lead break on this song is lethal, and it’ll pin your ears back.

With a title like “Dragon Clit,” it almost doesn’t matter what the song sounds like. Thankfully, it turns out this track is a killer. The riffage is like a line of lance-wielding Spartans advancing unstoppably, all the while stabbing straight for your eyes. It is another instrumental juggernaut. “Kittens and Coke” opens gently, like a murderer laying in wait. Suddenly, the entire group jumps out, every hand swinging a heavy hammer. We are told straight up that there “is only one thing that I need: kittens and coke.” Well, sure, who hasn’t said that themselves? And here we have it set to music. This is a tasty party song the legions will welcome.

Listening to this four-song EP on repeat might lead to spontaneous human combustion. Recommended.

Intergalactic Party Powder is out now. Bandcamp is the reliable hook-up. While you are there, check out the band’s other albums – there is lot of great music ready to be heard.

Links.

Bandcamp, https://robotdeathmonkey.bandcamp.com/album/intergalactic-party-powder

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/RobotDeathMonkey/

© Wayne Edwards

Robot Death Monkey, Intergalactic Party Powder (2022)

Nazareth, Surviving The Law (Frontiers Records 2022)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , ,

Legendary hard rock band Nazareth release their 25th studio album, Surviving The Law.

I could go on and on about Nazareth, but I have done that before in this very blog so I’ll try to keep it short this time. They are icons in the heavy music world, best known for the timeless album Hair Of The Dog (1975), they had many big albums and a few radio hits as well, like “Holiday” from Malice In Wonderland (1980). They played hard rock in the earliest days, and maintained a hard edge throughout even as the music lightened up a few notches and went through phases and evolutions. I have a physical copy of every album they ever released and, while of course I have favorites, I still pull from the entire canon when I want to hear Nazareth music.

When I started listening to them in the 1970s, the band was Dan McCafferty (vocals), Manny Charlton (guitar), Pete Agnew (bass), and Darrell Sweet (drums). Over the years the line-up changed of course, and now Pete Agnew is the only founding member still in the band. Agnew is joined by Carl Sentance (vocals), Jimmy Murrison (guitar), and Lee Agnew (drums) on the new album.

First up in the fourteen-track set is “Strange Days.” It has a gritty sound and grungy guitar line that is complemented by the ever listenable vocals of Sentance. It is a heavy song and great opener. “You Gotta Pass It Around” follows on a slower heel with a soulful lilt. “Runaway” hit me like a song from Loud ‘N’ Proud, and that is a good thing. Peppy and ever on the chase, this one is a great radio song.

“Sweet Kiss” is a great bluesy song that hooks you early and keeps you in its clutches. “Sinner” is a fast-moving rocking number that does remind you a little of Judas Priest (but not that song), and “Psycho Skies” has a feel to it that makes you want to hear it live. While the last song, “You Made Me,” is a slow one, ballads are avoided on this album. I was pleased by the pace, and there are many great cuts throughout.

I wondered before I sat down to listen to this album whether it would sound like Nazareth to me. I have gotten over Dan McCaffrey’s retirement and that was a tough for us long-time fans because his voice is iconic. No one else sounds like him. Once that idea is inculcated, you can hear Nazareth in the music. Long lived bands almost always change over time. We can, each of us, either accept that truth or not.

I don’t know how many more Nazareth albums there will be, but I can tell you this – Surviving The Law is a good one. Recommended.

Surviving The Law is out now through Frontiers Records on CD, vinyl, cassette, and digital.

Links.

Website, https://www.nazarethdirect.co.uk/website/

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/nazarethofficial

Frontiers Records, https://www.frontiers.shop/nazareth/

© Wayne Edwards

Nazareth, Surviving The Law (Frontiers Records 2022)