Not really sure how to approach this one – on one hand the music on this release is a solid blend of grime, scumfuckery and despair I’m after when I put on some black n’ roll, but on the other it’s got some messages that aren’t really …uhhh…anywhere near my line of thinking? I’ll pull a “separate the art from the artist” here, just like we all look the other way when Varg Vikernes opens his mouth, and review the album based on its artistic merit.

Musically, this album is like what would happen if Motorhead got shived in a back alley (say it ain’t so!), had their corpses possessed by cocaine loving demons that have spent the last century watching 80’s horror and biker flicks (don’t bother trying to work out the time travel math on that statement. You won’t.) and unleashed their re-animated corpses back onto the unsuspecting metal scene of 2015. Gritty guitar meets abusive drums to form the black n’ roll back bone of Whiskey Rituals debut (?) album . On top of this crusty black n’ roll wave rides the vocalist, screaming about all form of sins and debasements of the human soul in throat rending accompaniment. I really jam out on the abrasiveness of this mix; it’s just the right level of recorded in a dirty alley while not sounding like your typical bedroom black metal mix. Overall, a perfect fit for Whiskey Rituals whole “mean dudes who would shank you for your leather jacket then smoke meth while watching you bleed out” aesthetic.

But the real burning question here is: Does this release bring anything new to the game or are we just watching the same old corpse paint and leather pants show we’ve seen before? Not as much as I wish it did if I’m going to be honest. There are moments that stand out from the brash assault, but these moments aren’t as frequent as I was hoping for or should be for bands jostling for attention in the black metal scene. One of those infrequent moments is Satanic Kommando – all the elements of what I want from greasy black n’ roll without any of the fat or gristle.

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