I first got onto this band a long time ago, and it shames me that I was too busy having my head up my arse with Death Metal and Doom to get around to reviewing a lot of their stuff. Such excellence they released with “Blasphemusic” (2012), “Your Fault” (2017), and for me one of their finest ever, if not one of the finest releases ever, “Demon Face/Stalingrad’s Cross“. Two tales of such utter insanity that would, and does, make one weep. I can only urge you to have a listen to it.
Their superb blend of what a lot of us grew up with, plain out Metal, Thrash, some old Hardcore influences (DRI etc.) Doom, Death, Rock and Roll, in all actual fact they just say fuck that shit, and do what ever they wish. I have stated this before, and will again. The end product takes you way back to the good old days, and yet stays completely relevant in a world where we like to pigeonhole just about any band that comes our way. Tell me I am wrong.
So here we are in 2020, and some if not all of us want some goodness, some respite from the cruelness of bushfires and floods and viruses. Some of us want to be reminded that decent bands still exist, creativity is still on their minds, and I for one think that their upcoming album “NecroEclosion” (to be released in January) may well be the key into a better year.
What track do you need to know to hear just how spectacular this album is. From “Custom of the Sea” to “Hellhound,” and on to the excellent “Sights to the sky,” you may well wonder just what the fuck is happening, but you will be smiling for sure unless you are a genre snob. Nobody likes a genre snob now do they. Bring on “As Death Before Disco,” and all those born in the seventies will have a good giggle until they get their faces torn off by some serious punk like attitude.
“Ghost Dance” puts us back into a more heavier frame, and yet it still reeks of the attitude of “whatever the fuck we want to do.” Are you unhappy yet? Are you not liking the fact that they can make Venom look outdated and Bathory look like a twit? Are you not digging the fact that they just do as they please? Tell me the riffs here don’t remind you of a time that was, and a time that has now passed, and needs bands to relight the torch and carry on the dream.
“Causes” Shows just again how excellent they are. You expect one thing, you get another. “Mad Wolf,” well, one may even think of the anger of one Mille Petrozza (Kreator) in delivery back in his earlier days. Such viciousness. Such conviction. I can only sum up this album, and this band in so many ways.
Student’s of the greatest, purveyors of the most excellent, they have not directly made any attempt to be anything else than what they are. Gravehuffer, I salute you. The rest is for you to discover.
Rating – 5/5
The Metal Wanderlust 
Thank you so much for the fantastic review \,,/
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