SNOW - Fast N‘ Heavy Loud N‘ Slow (Album Review)

Release date: January 20th 2021. Label: Self Released. Format: DD

Fast N‘ Heavy Loud N‘ Slow – Tracklisting

1.Skate Fast Die Hard 02:25
2.Escape From Brasil 05:11
3.Prensado 03:12
4.Crying Eyes 02:58
5.Perfect Lies 02:08
6.Paradoxical Conflicts 03:00
7.Nowhere Fast 03:42
8.Good Vibes From Hell 03:17

Members

Guitars, Drums, Vocals - Rodrigo “Rod“ Neves
Lead Guitar - Andrez Machado
Bass - Rodrigo Borba

Review

Fast N‘ Heavy Loud N‘ Slow is the new album from Brazilian Sludge/Stoner Punk Upstarts SNOW. They play a blend of fast and furious Sludge/Stoner Metal with massive Crossover Punk appeal. The album is undeniably aggressive with the band living up to their multi-genre potential and that means they can appeal to fans of different genres with this release.

The album is quite short running for around 26 minutes spread across 8 songs. The vocals from Rodrigo fit very well in all of the genres contained on this release. The music is super-tight with a vibrant energy between all 3 band members and make for a convincing Sludge/Stoner Metal Power Trio of sorts.

The songs show a wide range of versatility with SNOW not settling down for one overall sound but a mixture of different styles with passionate vocals and lyrics leading the way. If you dig bands such as CANCER BATS then SNOW have a similar vibe to that great band. Well perhaps their earlier records especially on songs such as: Skate Fast Die Hard, Escape From Brasil, Perfect Lies and Nowhere Fast.

SNOW recorded, mixed and mastered the album themselves allowing to keep to the DIY PUNK Tradition that’s shown throughout the entire album. The best parts of the album is where the band focus solely on Sludge/Stoner Metal grooves and then move to a more Skate Punk attitude.

Overall, Fast N‘ Heavy Loud N‘ Slow is a superbly entertaining record that shows another style of Sludge/Stoner Metal from the South American Scene and SNOW are definitely worth checking out.

Excellent and Highly Recommended.

Words by Steve Howe

Links:

Facebook | BandCamp

Celebrity Stalker - Thrill Seekers (Album Review)

Release date: January 09^th 2020. Label: Self Released. Format: DD

Thrill Seekers - Tracklisting

1. Thrill Seekers

2. Crime Styles of the Rich

3. American Dreams

4. Hatriots

5. Art of War

6. Repressed

7. Celebrity Stalker

8. I Am

Members

Jason Young – Bass, Lead Vocals

Larry Prosser – Lead Guitar, Lead/Backup Vocals

Charlie Moffett – Drums, Backup Vocals

Review

Thrill Seekers is the new album from Punk/Metal Crossover Band – Celebrity Stalker. OK, so these guys aren’t Doom/Sludge/Stoner Metal in anyway but I wanted to review their debut album as I used to dig a lot of this style of music in my younger years and it’s always good to revisit music you loved back from your youth. And these guys have written a hard-hitting album with a deep social conscience.

The album is fast-paced, aggressive and down-right catchy in places. The band say they’re aren’t a political band in any shape of form. However, the band to touch upon some hard-hitting social issues on this album which makes you really think about what the band are currently singing about.

There are 8 songs on the album and the band take influence from Slayer, Suicidal Tendencies and Iron Maiden but Celebrity Stalker follow their own destructive path with aggressive melodic riffs and some fine vocals from almost everyone in the band.

Maybe the album has a “Classic/Retro” feel to it but the music is so damn good that the Punk/Metal Crossover aspect of the whole album is what fully sells Celebrity Stalker as a hugely talented band in their own right. The lyrics and vocals do take a few songs to fully get used to but after that it’s all systems go for a violent onslaught of aggressive grooves with intelligence to match.

Standout songs include: Crime Styles Of The Rich, American Dreams, Hatriots, Art Of War and Celebrity Stalker.

If you’re a fan of this style of music then you need to check out Celebrity Stalker now. As these guys have an important message to say to the world and it ain’t pretty.

Excellent and Highly Recommended.

Words by Steve Howe

Links:

Facebook | Instagram | CD Baby

Svlphvrvs - The Surfeit (Album Review)

Release date: May 21^st 2016. Label: Self Released. Format: CD/DD

The Surfeit – Tracklisting

1. Intro: All of Them Witches 01:09

2.The Surfeit 01:02

3.Perverse Ain't the Word 01:06

4.Sequestered Days (moonlight requisition) 00:54

5.Chaos and Guilt 01:14

6.Cows and You 01:02

7.Torn From the Future (a family story) 00:56

8.Adoration 01:34

9.Pazuzu's Sow 02:20

10.Anxious West 01:02

11.Mother Pile 01:17

12.The New Family (code R.E.D.) 02:01

13.I Wanna Be Rewarded For Who I Am 01:46

14.Disbelief 01:07

15.Micro Aggressor 00:53

16.Pedophile Immolation 01:15

17.Runoff 01:40

18.Amaryan 01:04

19.Life's Shit Lotto (irreversible neurogenic damage from aerosolized pig brain inhalation) 01:08

20.Word Crime 00:45

21.Bonnacon 01:00

22.Unpaid 01:26

23.I Don't Own Anything 01:12

24.Epic March 02:22

25.Endtro: All of Them Witches (Reprise): The End of Civilization 01:56

Band Members:

Jason Goldberg: bass, vox

Jon Slusher: guitar and vox

Jim Staffel: drums

Review:

So this is what happens when you get two members of Sludge/Post-Metallers – BEAK and the drummer from YAKUZA. Svlphvrvs is a very hard band to describe. Psych, Thrash, Doom, Crossover and Punk Rock. Very different to their respective bands. Svlphvrvs debut album is a 25 song opusthat runs less than 30 minutes and it's been a very hard album to review. As most of the songs only last 60 seconds or so. It's hard to get a distinct impression of the entire album.

Though I will say Svlphvrvs never outstay their welcome as they create some highly fucked-up and action packed riffs which veers into many different musical directions. This is one collection of songs that has a major identity crisis but I think that's the point of Svlphvrvs. It's loud, messy and violent but it's a whole load of fun from start to finish. Crossover Thrash merged with Psychedelic Noise/Doom tinged Punk Rock. It's a collection of sounds influenced from the Punk, Hard Rock and Heavy Metal scenes over the last 40 years.

Fans of Minor Threat, Discharge and Slayer should definitely check this out. I can't pick a standout track as Svlphvrvs don't create songs that are meant to be liked. They create songs that are meant to be used as a war-cry when jumping about in a violent mosh-pit. The vocals are superb even if they sound very disjointed at times. You may think I'm hating on this album but believe me I'm not. I think this is a damn good record and it's an exciting wild ride. The production could have done with more work though you don't want the album to be overly-produced as that would take away a little bit of the magic that Svlphvrvs create here.

If you want something different to your usual run-of-the-mill Heavy Metal sounds then The Surfeit will no doubt entertain you for the next 30 mins. Highly Recommended.

Words by Steve Howe

Links:

Facebook | BandCamp