Weekend Breakdown: Deathraiser, Subhuman, Head Crusher, and Vehement

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. I am far behind in my reviews and wanted to get a couple written, but I also haven't posted a new Weekend Breakdown for a while. The backup of bands I have in waiting is overwhelming and I could have made this post an obnoxiously long one, featuring a dozen bands, but if I had time for that we wouldn't have so few posts this month, right?

Right.

So let's get into this week's...

DEATHRAISER
There are a slew of thrash bands that try to convey a deep meaning in their songwriting, holding the listener tenderly with moody transitions, overlong intros, and toe-tapping choruses. Others just want to tear your f***ing throat out.

Brazil's DEATHRAISER hammers out slaughtering thrash that rubs your face hard in the gravel of its relentless speed and aggression. These guys take a stripped-down Kreator approach to thrash and kick the speed up to almost unmanageable proportions. Do want the fury of a non-stop thrash assault? Then by all means, get your hands on Deathraiser's Violent Aggression album and let it pummel your ears bloody. Completely bad-ass.

Check out the streaming vids and then hit them up on Facebook.







SUBHUMAN
Italy's SUBHUMAN play killer death/thrash that is as tight and technically sound as it is brutal. The drums and guitars roll together in razor sharp precision, laying out a fierce foundation for vocalist "Zula" Ferzola's throat-mangling charge.

Subhuman slams out fast and searing metal. For those who lean on the death side of aggressive tunage, check them out below and then Facebook them here.







HEAD CRUSHER
HEAD CRUSHER originally formed in Colombia and are now located in Texas, forging a 10-year history of spreading their brand of Cavalera-tinged thrash/hardcore/death. These guys crank out fat hooks that combines vicious speed with mid-tempo groove. At times, they layer the songs with passionate slices of atmosphere to let the music take off in flight before nailing them back down with aggressive riffage. Cool stuff.

Listen below and follow them here.





VEHEMENT
We go back to Italy to find some crushing modern thrash in the form of VEHEMENT. These guys use many tools within the various extreme music genres to create their metal.Vehement pack a punch with a hammering onslaught of guitars and vocals that hint of aggressive hardcore without going completely crossover. At times, you'll catch a curve ball such as the NOLA-esque riffs and vocals in All That's Behind and the painfully brutal sludge in The Slow Drowning of Mortality.

Vehement is a killer band that blends its influences into coherent slabs of mean freaking' METAL. Check them out below and follow them here (If the stream below isn't working, go here to listen to their available streaming songs).