Getting high on the face-breaking punk/thrash of HI-GH!

As a fan of the raw punk and thrash attack of Itaily’s VIOLENTOR, it’s no wonder why I instantly fell for the rumble and roll of HI-GH.

Yeah, these guys harness enough raw power to kill an elephant, grinding away at teeth-shattering punk and speed metal riffage mixed with head banging rhythms and venomous vocals. At times, with the use of dynamic repetition in their riffs and with vocalist Tommaso Slowly’s in-your-face performance, HI-GH sounds like a speed/thrash-based, less industrial Ministry on steroids (Check out the end to 'HI-GH (Can You Roll It For Me)'). All this is in wonderful contrast to some of HI-GH’s more, shall we say, soulful guitar work, showing a bit of love for their 70s metal influences.

Catchy and pissed, THIS is thrash ’n’ roll at it’s best! Give HI-GH a listen below and then check out their Facebook page here.

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Homicide Hagridden ROCKS!

Thrash, thrash, THRASH! For the past few days, I've been slamming my head to the insanity of Homicide Hagridden, allowing them to bloody my ears with some well-meaning Slayer worship. The Hagridden crew adds a few drops of Teutonic influences to hammer home a thunderous mass of speedy metal, complete with fist-pumping e-string gallops and the occasional face-stomping breakdown.

Damn, these guys seriously kicked my ass hard. Their tune Black As War is as thrash as it gets!

Check out Homicide Hagridden's new album "US" below, buy it here, and then hit these guys up on Facebook.

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Motam Death Squad ROCKS!

Ah, man, I arrived late to the party once again.

Surfing around the mighty YouTube can offer up unexpected results when searching for thrash metal. Whilst mining through mountains of crap, there are nuggets of gold to be found, and found one I surely did! Unfortunately that particular golden nugget had already broken up. Sad.

For those of you not privy to the band, let me introduce the late MOTAM DEATH SQUAD, a crossover band from Italy that gives a fair share of nods to Teutonic thrash as it does S.O.D., Anthrax, Sadus, and even Scatterbrain (to a point).

These guys were in it for the FUN, and although most of us like our thrash fun as well as fast, it would all be for nothing without kick-ass riffs to propel the festivities along. NO WORRIES here, my finicky friends, as their 2011 self-titled album is swirling with face-ripping riffage, backed by head-slamming dynamics and rhythms.

The fact that MDS's album didn't reach beyond the self-released status is a shame. Supposedly, before they broke up they made their self-titled album available as a free download. As of this writing, I cannot find the official download link to this brilliant parting gift from a killer band I never had the pleasure of knowing while they were still kicking. Boo.

Thankfully, we can still jam Motam Death Squad via YouTube. Check out the full album below (note that the music begins around the 1:55 mark), and if your internet searching skills trump mine, please post any found info about MDS in the comments section. (Yes, I found their MySpace page, but, man...if there is any useful info to be found there, I surely could not find it.)

New song from Ultra-Violence!

In a previous post, The NWOTM Blog sung praises about the mighty Italian thrashers ULTRA-VIOLENCE and their powerfully solid brand of aggressive METAL.

Although the wait hasn't been too long for some new Ultra-Violence, I believe that kick-ass music can never come soon enough, right? Right. Well, recently we've been blessed with a taste of Privilege To Overcome, their upcoming full-length album from Punishment 18 Records!

Take a look-see down and check out the frenzy of their new song Turn Into Dust! This song is a continuation of the throat-tearing music we've come to expect of a band with such a horns-up moniker.

Turn Into Dust is delightfully sick with a riff (that begins about 2:14) that is sure to cause more than a couple injuries in the pit. I'm freakin' excited to jam the rest of this album!

As for you, listen below, thrash out, and then go hit up their Facebook page. \m/

Review: Violentor - Rot

Italy's gutterpunk thrashers VIOLENTOR created a debut album that still holds a high spot on my music-listening rotation. The self-titled album's furious mix of distorted riffs and venomous vocals are both searingly intense and catchy as hell.

With their second album, Violentor hits the ground running with the title track ROT.  Right away you can feel that adrenaline kick in and be comforted that Violentor picks up right where they left us on their debut with a high-octane punk/thrash attack. Why change up the formula if it works so damn well?

Songs like and Free Spree and Daemonical Tutor are blistering pieces of work that bring to mind The Exploited type of riffage - except they take those riffs, push them down in a dirty ally, and kick them around until they are all bruised, bloodied, and full of grit and grime. In turn, those riffs do the same thing to the listener, like a twisted pay-it-forward scheme.

The song Breath of Hate offers a bit more to Violentor's arsenal with a rather slow and foreboding mid-section, offering a nice dynamic. The album closer The Last Sentence is a slow grinder, nearly balancing out the non-stop barrage of balls-out attitude emanating from the previous tracks.

Rot is an all-together mass of kick-ass insanity. I just love how Violentor can make ugly music a thing of beauty.

Listen to the full album below and if you're interested, pick up their CD from EBM Records here.