Australia has a rich history in the game of Metal. Think back to bands like the Thrash masters Mortal Sin, the celebrators of Death Metal Armoured Angel, the raw and savage power of 4Arm, the melodic deathliness of Bel’akor and the all-round storm that is Parkway Drive just name to a few.
Well Envenomed is another one from Oz that will carry on that tradition but more in the Old School Heavy Metal vibe. Think Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, and Rainbow. “The Walking Shred” is 12 dynamic tracks of Old School Metal textures interspersed with some melodically mixed in Thrash.
This album is heavy with hooks and lead breaks for your air guitaring pleasure, head banging moments and singalong choruses all mixed together with some tasty shredding. The vocals are clean but delivered with enough power to still hit you between the eyes. The song writing is above par, and the production is spot on allowing all the instrumentation to be clearly heard and identified.
All the songs on here are tremendous however I’ve picked a few that, in my mind, typify Envenomed to a tee. They are “Abandon Hope”, “Rebellion”, “The Haunting”, “Sacrifice” and the anthemic “Metal United”. These tracks are chock full of everything I’ve just spoken about including massive riffs, colossal shredding, mammoth vocals and thunderous drumming.
For the lovers of metal ballads, “Fate Closes the Door” has a Megadeth feel to it. It’s beautifully crafted with some well written soaring lead breaks and singalong choruses, along with the mandatory, holding your lighter on the air, sections. There is a cover of “Are You Gonna Go My Way”. I’m not sure of why it’s there but I guess the band like the song and their version sounds pretty good anyway so what the hey.
“The Walking Shred” is one for the Old School purists and Heavy Metal traditionalists but if you’re curiosity is spiked, go have a listen. You just might just be surprised.
Rating – 4/5
Get some!
https://shop.el-puerto-records.com/en/music/cd/40/envenomed-the-walking-shred
The Metal Wanderlust 