BONEHUNTER
'Children of the Atom' (a Fallout reference?) is Bonehunter's third album. I'm unfamiliar with their other work, so I'm in virgin territory here. Bonehunter tread similar ground as Kvelertak - blackened rock and roll - and do it with passion and vigour. It's an obvious choice to weld the ferocity and vocal screeching of extreme metal with their earliest direct musical ancestry. In an age where innovation is looking more and more stagnant, it's fitting that bands look to the distant past to draw influence from.
Despite a pointless piece of intro filler, and it is infuriating these things exist, the pace is instantly relentless; blistering drums and rock and roll guitars, with a smattering of tremolo picking. Only at track 4, the title track, does the pace slow for a few moments, before exploding out the gate again. Brief respite is welcome, as a one-dimensional pace can become tiring (sacrilegious as it is, I struggle to listen to 'Reign in Blood' these days). Maybe I'm just old, though. And, although I enjoyed a great deal of the album, I'm buggered if I can remember any of it. Much like Kvelertak, while I applaud the creativity of black and roll, I find it very much like fast food. It's instantly gratifying but forgotten about half an hour later. The only thing I do genuinely remember is the title 'Sex Messiah Android', because it's so hilariously dumb.
I'm disappointed that I have to give this a middling score, because when it's playing I'm tapping my feet and nodding my head. But, the only thing bringing me back to it is for the writing of this review. As soon as this is done, I probably won't come back to it.
Despite a pointless piece of intro filler, and it is infuriating these things exist, the pace is instantly relentless; blistering drums and rock and roll guitars, with a smattering of tremolo picking. Only at track 4, the title track, does the pace slow for a few moments, before exploding out the gate again. Brief respite is welcome, as a one-dimensional pace can become tiring (sacrilegious as it is, I struggle to listen to 'Reign in Blood' these days). Maybe I'm just old, though. And, although I enjoyed a great deal of the album, I'm buggered if I can remember any of it. Much like Kvelertak, while I applaud the creativity of black and roll, I find it very much like fast food. It's instantly gratifying but forgotten about half an hour later. The only thing I do genuinely remember is the title 'Sex Messiah Android', because it's so hilariously dumb.
I'm disappointed that I have to give this a middling score, because when it's playing I'm tapping my feet and nodding my head. But, the only thing bringing me back to it is for the writing of this review. As soon as this is done, I probably won't come back to it.
LABEL:
FORMAT:
Hells Headbangers
Album
CHILDREN OF THE ATOM
Review by Steve Cowan
RUNNING TIME:
36:13
RELEASE DATE:
28th Sept 2018
TRACK LISTING
1) Initiate the Sequence
2) Demonic Nuclear Armament
3) Sex Messiah Android
4) Children of the Atom
5) The Reek of Reaper's Scythe
6) Black Star Carcass
7) Spider's Grave
8) Cybernetic Vampirism
9) Man of Steel
10) Devil Signal Burst
2) Demonic Nuclear Armament
3) Sex Messiah Android
4) Children of the Atom
5) The Reek of Reaper's Scythe
6) Black Star Carcass
7) Spider's Grave
8) Cybernetic Vampirism
9) Man of Steel
10) Devil Signal Burst
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN:
Finland
"Despite a pointless piece of intro filler... the pace is instantly relentless; blistering drums and rock and roll guitars, with a smattering of tremolo picking."
