It’s Friday, which means two things: giving this week the finger, and new music! Tune in every Friday for The Pit’s round-up of new releases, from singalong hard rock to pus-drenched underground death metal. Keep those ears bleeding!
Venom Prison, Primeval (Prosthetic Records)
For fans of: Bloodbath, Landmine Marathon, Napalm Death
Standout track: “Life Suffer”
It’s easy for some to write Venom Prison off as millennial metal for their outspoken political beliefs, but listen to their music and you’ll hear as delicious a death metal act as you can find in 2020. Primeval includes a number of rerecorded tracks from earlier in the band’s career, and the maturity and updated production definitely lends them the definition they deserve. One of the more exciting bands to see rising to the top of their genre.
Blue Öyster Cult, The Symbol Remains (Frontiers Records)
For fans of: KISS, Dirty Honey, Billy Idol
Standout track: “Edge of the World”
New Blue Öyster Cult! Wait, new Blue Öyster Cult? Yup, the New York classic rock acts are back with their first new record in 19 years, and damn if it ain’t a lot of fun. From chuggy biker rock tracks to more radio-friendly ‘70s throwback anthems, The Symbol Remains is a rousing invitation to drink some beer, burn one down, and take in the BÖC once more. You don’t have to fear the reaper, but you don’t have to give into him, either.
Bloodbather, Silence (Rise Records)
For fans of: Vein, Vatican, Great American Ghost
Standout track: “Erase”
You may hear the name ‘Bloodbather’ and think, Oh, it’s a death metal band, probably from Sweden, but my friend, this is a far scarier beast, and it comes from somewhere far worse: Florida. With a devastating mixture of mathcore, metalcore, nu-metal, death metal, and the sonic equivalent of the stuff you find under your fingernails, this duo create the kind of screeching, unbalance music that’ll either make you hunch your shoulders or kick over a gravestone. Look for these guys as a rising voice in the underground, but don’t stare too long, or they might bite one of your eyes out.
The Budos Band, Long In The Tooth (Daptone Records)
For fans of: The soundtrack to Blacula
Standout track: “Sixth Hammer”
If you need music to get stoned and dance around the house to, no one beats the Budos Band. The New York dark funk crew play the kind of eerie, throbbing bob-alongs that’ll excite fans of both Eddie Harris and Pallbearer. On Long In The Tooth, the dudes display a sense of growth without sacrificing a single drop of their spooky-funky essence. This is more voodoo zombie than Romero zombie, but soundtrack hounds and horror fans will die dancing to this tailfeather-shaker.
Other crushers:
- Yatra, All Is Lost (Grimoire Records)
- Touche Amore, Lament (Epitaph)
- Necrophobic, Dawn of the Damned (Century Media)
- Ascension of the Watchers, Apocrypha (Dissonance Productions)
- King Parrot, Holed Up In The Lair EP (Housecore)
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Words by Chris Krovatin
