Album Type: EP
Date
Released:
31/08/2017
Label: APF Records
The abrasiveness
of the tracks is exceptional. Whatever you call it, this follow up to their
2016 debut "Wrank" is uncannily brutal. Cuts like "Nil By
Mouth" and "Everything Equals Death" are chainsaws of sound,
ripping into your head in ways you did not expect
"Bork" CD//DD track listing
1.
Agony
2.
Nil By Mouth
3.
Everything Equals Death
4.
Threats
5.
Tumour
6.
Eternal Regret
The Review:
There
is so much to appreciate of artful metal and extreme music with a vision.
Literally dozens of metal albums in 2017 have come to you with a message, a
profound social commentary or literary and/or historical concept at its core.
Kingston
Upon Hull, UK's Mastiff
are not one of those bands. Mastiff lowers the sonic boom with angst and
decibels. And it will give you a new appreciation for the sheer levels the band
takes both.
On
their new release, "Bork,"
the British group, which bills itself as doing an aggressive form of sludge,
drills you with a sound so fierce that you just do not hear often, even in
metal. You may not be sure where the sludge notion came from because "Bork" is as far from it as
you can find. "Bork" is as
methodical as any sludge classic in this sense. However, the sophomore
recording by Mastiff
feels more like an especially nihilistic form of thrash or hardcore. The
abrasiveness of the tracks is exceptional. Whatever you call it, this follow up
to their 2016 debut "Wrank"
is uncannily brutal. With During the opening "Agony" and throughout this record, vocalist Jim Hodges
and the band are inconsolably anguished. You hear fury and pain in every note.
Extreme
music takes vocalists to limits few of us could even imagine testing our
voices. Hodges is truly spectacular, literally killing each song with his
inconsolable wail. At every turn, he seems to be giving everything he can to
every note, and one has to wonder if there is a breaking point. However, Mastiff
can offer range beyond growling. A song like "Eternal Regret" is a departure that Hodges simply
outshines almost any other metal vocalist on. He's the centerpiece of this
black orchestra, though the players all make it a happy torture throughout.
Mastiff's sound could
seemingly only be this loud with two guitarists, and Phil Johnson and James
Andrew Lee fulfill their roles with aplomb. Cuts like "Nil By Mouth" and "Everything
Equals Death" are chainsaws of sound, ripping into your head in ways
you did not expect. Mastiff has gotten a live reputation for its
volume and the heaviness of its music. "Bork"
does a great deal to confirm those reviews.
Fortunately
enough, Mastiff
is expected to hit the road in the near future. A performance of the songs on "Bork" done live is assuredly
going to be a flailing and fun experience.
