Weekly Round-Up: Jan 26th 2014

Tengger Cavalry

The brilliant Tengger Cavalry are back with their second album in as many years. What makes this band special, above all else, is their employment of traditional Eastern instrumentation, rhythms and throat singing. This is Folk Metal like you've never heard before. We have heard the Celtic, Eastern European and Scandinavian Folk Metal bands in their droves, but now it's time for the East to rise (much as it is in the "real" world). This band really is excellent and armed with their exhilarating and energetic take on Folk Black Metal, they are well placed to make the leap to the upper echelons of the scene. They are influenced by Mongolian Folk Music, Buddhism and Chinese Folk Music and the end result is truly unique.

Truckfighters

Next up we have Sweden's own Truckfighters who come tearing out of the blocks on this, their fourth album, with the track "Mind Control". Clearly influenced by Kyuss, Fu Manchu and the likes, this is classic Stoner / Fuzz Rock, but with a modern twist. This type of 'retro' Rock is huge in Sweden and has been for some time, so of course there have been a great deal of chancers attempting to get famous by strapping on a guitar and releasing generic 70's influenced Hard Rock records. Thankfully, Truckfighters are something a little more special. They have the songs, they have the swagger and they clearly have the support of the media and their peers. When former Kyuss / current QOTSA mastermind Josh Homme refers to your band as "the best band that's ever existed", you know you are doing something right. If that wasn't enough for you, here are some other qoutes:

"Putting more rock energy into a single performance than a good proportion of bands do in a career's worth of shows" - Terrorizer Magazine.

"...the power and charm to make society grind to a halt" - Kerrang! Magazine.

"Truckfighters blast your ears with their unique take on modern rock" - Metal Hammer Magazine.

Simply put, you NEED to hear this band.

Primal Fear

If Power Metal is your thing, then you will find it hard to resist this, the 10th album from Germany's Primal Fear. The formula hasn't changed much, if at all, but that is what people want / expect from this style of music. They still, much like fellow Germans, Sinner (with whom they share at least one member), sound very much like a Judas Priest tribute act at times, but with the camp factor turned up to 11. This isn't cerebral music, but rather it is a fun, catchy collection of songs that will get you singing along and make you grin from ear to ear...and sometimes, that's all you need from music.

Throwdown

Hardcore / Groove Metal heroes, Throwdown return with a beast of an album. Absolutely full of huge stomping riffs and grooves to die for...and pleasingly, they haven't forgotten to write songs, as so many bands do. Yes, this is very much based in the Hardcore scene, both in mindset and musically, but the Metal influences clearly shine through.Thankfully, they have all but dropped the Pantera-tribute act that marred the previous couple of album(s) and have, instead, delivered a heavier, more in your face Hardcore Metal album - blending obvious influences such as Pantera, Terror, Hatebreed, Sepultura and DevilDriver to great effect. I've included a link to a new song below.

Throwdown - Avow

Caliban

I wasn't exactly overjoyed to see that Germany's Caliban are back with yet another album. Would it be the same derivative, tedious dirge that they have released time and time again or would they actually surprise me with some individuality and imagination this time? The album opens with a riff reminiscent of  Soulfly / Roots era Sepultura which is promising, but then in come the latter-day In Flames vocals, electronics and Deathcore riffing and very much over-used Hardcore-style "Gang vocals". I'm sorry to say that, as predicted, this album hasn't changed my opinion, in fact it has reinforced it. In all fairness to them, they have tried to experiment a little, but for the most part it falls flat. You might find it worth listening to for a couple of songs, but I can't see it holding your interest for any longer than that. There are a lot of other bands out there doing this Metalcore / Deathcore / Modern Metal thing and doing it better. Judge for yourself.