Blackened Death Metal
Fireflash Records
Release Date – November 24th 2023
Line Up:
John Wilcox – Vocals
Dave Powell – Guitar
Bear – Guitar
Lewis Chrimes – Bass
James Williams – Drums
Tracklist:
1 – All Hope In Fire
2 – Beyond The Gates
3 – The Serpents Rise
4 – Blood On The Altar
5 – Damnations Black Winds
6 – Into The Abyss Once More
7 – Pathways
“Master’s Call hails from the Midlands’ Black Country, so metal is in their industrial, coal-filled DNA. They draw inspiration from the best elements of bands like Watain, Emperor, Morbid Angel, Immortal, and, of course, their fellow Midlanders, Black Sabbath, and Judas Priest.
The proper Black Country metal journey begins with the opener, ‘All Hope In Fire.’ It starts with thunder, rain, a massive church organ, tolling bells, all creating a dark atmosphere. Then, a choppy riff and a bear-like roar kick off a massive slab of blackened death thrash. The sound is huge and anthemic, with James Williams pounding the drums and the guitars creating a nasty, filthy wash over the vocals.
‘Beyond The Gates’ intensifies, becoming more extreme, but a melodic synth smoothens the background. The crushing ‘The Serpent’s Rise’ gets into your head with a spooky intro before shifting gears and racing along on a truly evil line. ‘Blood On The Altar’ is another rabid banger, full of black metal melodies and a death metal groove. ‘Damnations Black Winds’ is full-on, in-your-face blackened death thrash—loud, fast, and aggressive.
‘Into The Abyss Once More’ eases back a bit, featuring haunting screams of pain in the intro before another vicious stabbing riff and battery of rhythms knock you senseless. Just as you gather your senses, ‘Pathways’ delivers another aural pummeling that finishes the job. It’s proper heavy, grooving like a bastard on a fine bass line from Lewis Chrimes.
As my teenage daughter says, ‘Like, Wow! Just wow!’ Honestly, I thought the Scandinavians and the Yanks had the monopolies on extreme metal, but oh no, they don’t! Master’s Call is as good as I’ve heard, if not better. The rock-solid rhythms from Chrimes and Williams, lethal guitars from Powell and Bear, and the vocals from the reluctant frontman Wilcox are right on point. It might be extreme metal, but there are a whole load of melodies in there too. All this and an expensively sounding mix/master from Kristian ‘Kohle’ Bonifer make this an essential purchase. Go on, treat yourself to an early Xmas prezzie.”
Written by: Smudge
Ratings: 8/10
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