Release Date: March 22nd 2026. Record Label: Self Released. Formats: DD.
Destroyer - Tracklisting
1.Destroyer True 02:56
2.Summon Ape 06:08
3.Slow Crawl Towards Death 08:16
4.Blood, Ice And Steel 03:28
5.Burn The Crown 06:49
Members
Guitars & vocals: Eetu Heikkinen
Drums: Tuomas Ojala
Bass: Olli Heikkinen
Review
Destroyer is the debut EP from Doom/Sludge Metallers Gorilla Warrior and the record more than lives up to its name with the band creating heavy and pummelling grooves from the very start. You can hear influences such as High On Fire, Mastodon, -(16)- and EyeHateGod. The violent vocals have a great violent touch which allows Gorilla Warrior to UNLEASH HELL ON EARTH from the opening beats of the excellent opening track Destroyer True. From this moment on, the music is played at a super fast pace for the most part with Gorilla Warrior expanding their musical horizons to play a sludgy style of LOW & SLOW instrumental passages within the next two tracks of Summon Ape and Slow Crawl Towards Death.
Gorilla Warrior perfect their brutal AMPLIFIED sounds with the music becoming more melodic and quite primal with small elements of Thrash and Black Metal starting to form. There’s a lot going on within Summon Ape with Gorilla Warrior expanding their own brutal musical style for a harsh destructive atmosphere. The vocals are primal growls and harsh screams but they’re quite easy to understand which is always a good thing. The record does start with small bouts of PROGRESSIVE energy which adds to the overall great mix of different styles of music the band have created here.
With a heavy alliance of LOW & SLOW sounds allowing the sickest and heaviest parts of the record to form on tracks such as Slow Crawl Towards Death and Burn The Crown. This is music perhaps better suited to the dedicated follower of the Doom/Sludge Metal scene rather than a casual listener. As the EP does throw up some EXTREME grooves along the way which I adored even more.
The EP sounds excellent throughout with intense production values having a violent raw aesthetic for Gorilla Warrior to thrive upon. Destroyer is a superb EP for Gorilla Warrior to introduce themselves to the underground Doom/Sludge Metal community. If you want a record that is violent from the offset and never lets up with an avalanche of PISSED OFF sounds to lose yourself in then DESTROYER is the record for you.
Excellent and Highly Recommended.
Words by Steve Howe
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