Hail of Bullets, Warsaw Rising
Having only heard a few tracks from Hail of Bullets debut full length, Warsaw Rising serves as a great motivator to get off my ass and properly purchase its predecessor. Featuring three freshly recorded songs, one of which covers the glam New Yorkers Twisted Sister, as well as three hell raising live recordings, this EP is more than just a teaser of the next full length. It’s downright formidable in its own right.
Comprised of members from such death metal luminaries as Asphyx, Gorefest, Thanatos and more, Hail of Bullets let loose with volley after bloody volley of mid-paced, rumbling death metal that leans more toward the old school variations, yet has plenty of modern touches. The guitars are down-tuned and evil, carrying the weight of a thousand demons surging into your skull repeatedly. The rhythm section thunder like the oncoming Apocalypse, shaking the very foundation of civilization. The gravelly lead vocals are delivered with plenty of force and vehemence to fit the music perfectly.
Liberators
“Liberators” is the first of the newly recorded material and it starts off with memorable guitar work and steady drums for the first 30 seconds or so before a couple the vocals come in with a fury. The fuzzy riffs plunder your skull as the pace is amped up with pile driving drums and rumbling bass. The vocals are raw, raspy and evil. I love the guitar tone throughout the song — it’s got just the right amount of static to it. Be sure to check out the lead work starting at 2:40 that lasts a good long while.
Warsaw Rising
The title track starts off with a great bit of guitar work that’s not really that dark, but more relies on a slight melancholy feel. When the drums come in at the 30 second mark the tone is swallowed by mid-tempo double bass and down-tuned riffs. The guitars definitely have a old school flavor to them that screams 90’s death metal. There’s a brief slowdown comprised of slow drums and rumbling base around 2:30 that leads into a decent scream and chugging riffs. The 3:45 mark sees some of the quicker paced stuff on the EP and it certainly doesn’t disappoint. Rapid fire drumming and beefy riffs hurl the vocals along at a furious rate.
Destroyer
This is one of my favorite Twisted Sister tunes, so I’m pretty stoked to have a solid death metal cover of it. While I don’t think the song is improved any, it does become a completely different animal when performed by Hail of Bullets — an animal I don’t want to meet alone in the dark. It’s certainly darker and chock full of evil.
Red Wolves Of Stalin
This next one starts off three tracks from the band’s last full-length performed live from 2008’s Party.San festival. The most surprising thing about these tracks, however, is that they sound so damned crisp. At any rate, “Red Wolves of Stalin” is a ferocious mid-tempo, blasting bit of death metal that only makes me wish I had a copy of the band’s first album.
Nachthexen
“Nacthexen” is a monster of a song complete with snarling vocals, beefy guitars and drums that bring visions of galloping hooves of Hell’s armies. Hearing the crowd in the background chanting along with the band it killer. The lead at 3:15 is full of desolation and sorrow, but it’s short lived as the tone is quickly swallowed by monolithic riffs and raspy growls.
The Crucial Offensive
The last song on the EP is the final live recording, as well. Hail of Bullets starts off the song with massively heavy riffs and steady drum work. After listening to the live songs a few times now, I’m completely sold on the band. I need to get more of these guys music into my brain quickly.
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Favorite Tracks:
All of them
Additional Notes:
N/A