AGAINST EVIL - All Hail The King

April 7, 2018, 5 years ago

(Transcending Obscurity)

Mark Gromen

Rating: 7.0

review heavy metal aganist evil

AGAINST EVIL - All Hail The King

Full-length follow-up to the well-received '15 six track EP by this young, traditional minded Indian outfit. Opening "Enemy At The Gates" intro is just sliding fingers across an acoustic guitar, which are joined by cello and sporadic piano keys. It leads into a galloping horse introduced "The Army Of Four", which begins as a mid-tempo Manowar style number punctuated by high pitched scream. Come the guitar break, they throw the switch, opting for a more thrashing sound. Two of the four members do vocals, one gravelly Americanized modern metal, the other, slightly high pitched, traditional Euro style, depending upon the track. 

Title track utilizes booming/echo voice-overs atop thrash melody. The catchy call & response "Stand Up And Fight" would work well at overseas festivals. As a former British colony, their English is impeccable, unlike so many bands singing in a foreign tongue. Jeff Loomis (Arch Enemy/ex-Nevermore) guests on "Sentenced To Death", while there's an almost ‘80s simplicity to "Bad Luck". A gruffer voiced "We Won't Stop" might not just be a band mantra, but the best inclusion of the eight proper tunes. There's no doubt the guitarists have chops, but band seems conflicted on a definitive style/sound. The concluding ode to motorcycles, "Mean Machine" kick starts with the rev of said engine, then riffs like a Kill ‘Em All outtake. Always difficult to sustain interest on future projects, once the anomaly (shock/surprise) of unknown discovery wears off, but Against Evil deserve further investigation because of musical constructs, not ancillary hype.



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