Release Date: August 30th 2024. Record Label: APF Records. Formats: CD/DD
Brick By Brick: Tracklisting
1.Wrath Of The Serpent
2.Sonic Mass
3.Obsidian
4.Legion 04:42
5.Nineteen
6.Avalanche
7.Masking My Contempt 02:26
8.The Tusk
9.Speedfreak
10.Falling From The Edge Of Nowhere
11.Cirrhosis
12.Filthy Kebab On A Gut Full Of Lager
13.Electric Funeral
Members
Ryan Cole - Guitars, Bass
Elliot Cole - Drums & Percussion
Review
Instrumental Sludge/Stoner Metallers Wall debut album Brick By Brick isn’t the album that I originally expected. As I was expecting an action packed and very direct style of Instrumental Stoner Rock/Metal. However, Wall plays a bleak and sombre style of Sludge/Stoner Metal that likes to reside in the darker side of Instrumental passages with the band taking cues from bands such as BONGRIPPER and Clouds Taste Satanic throughout the whole record.
Wall is the project featuring Ryan Cole and Elliot Cole from highly influential UK Doom/Sludge/Stoner Metallers DESERT STORM. And this is about as far from DESERT STORM you can actually be with Wall being a great band within their own right.
The majority of these tracks have been released before by the band on previous releases but they feel highly different to the original releases. These versions feel darker and have a different creative energy which matches the journey of the whole album. So even though you may have heard these tracks before, please think again as Brick By Brick offers a different take from the original EP’s.
Wall are influenced by acts such as Karma To Burn and Black Sabbath with the act providing two stunning covers of Nineteen and Electric Funeral from each band within this album. The other eleven tracks sees Wall play harsh blends of Doomed Out and Down Tuned passages of Sludge Metal with fast-paced aggressive edges appearing within the excellent opening tracks of Wrath Of The Serpent and Sonic Mass.
There’s some twisted SONIC distortion within Sonic Mass that’s merged with classic sounding SABBATHIAN colossal style DOOM with a twisted Psychedelic Sludge delivery. Wall even shows deft creative influences such as High On Fire, Torche and Kylesa on this track alone which they fully expand into their own creative universe throughout the album.
The record can also be quite progressive and forward thinking whilst taking daring risks with its almost industrial based sound on tracks such as Obsidian, Legion, Avalanche and Masking My Contempt within the first half of the album. Wall has moments of Alt Rock/Metal running through different stages of the record which still retains a sense of gloomy reality which is down to the excellent stripped back production values.
Wall continue to explore their dark creative persona even further within the second half of the album with melodic strands of gloomy Industrial Sludge sounds having a bolder approach with heavy instrumental melodies that last for ages in some cases which is actually one of the albums main strengths.
Other standout tracks are The Tusk, Speadfreak, Falling From The Edge Of Nowhere and Filthy Kebab And A Gut Full Of Lager where moments of dark comedic humour appear to show quite a fun side to Wall.
As I said earlier within the review, Wall pay homage to their musical heroes Karma To Burn and Black Sabbath with outstanding covers of K2B’s track Nineteen and Black Sabbath’s track Electric Funeral with vocals provided by their good pal Dave Oglesby. Both tracks don’t stray to far from the original but they add their own Sludgy dark spin on these tracks to give them both a slightly different feel.
Brick By Brick is a superbly entertaining record that actually does something different and exciting with the Instrumental Sludge/Stoner Metal format. With a dark creative take on the Instrumental take on that genre, Brick By Brick is going to be remembered for being one of the standout Instrumental Metal albums released this year.
Words by Steve Howe
Thanks to For The Lost for the promo.
Brick By Brick will be available to buy on CD/DD via APF Records on Friday August 30th 2024.
Links
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