Warpath - Damnation (English Version)

The new sensation of the moment is called Warpath. This quartet from the United Kingdom has been causing a frisson not only in their homeland, but also in the rest of Europe, USA and other countries as well. The reason for such euphoria is easily explainable: the rescue of the roots of Thrash Metal. Provoking comments in its favor or opposed ones, all of them very heated, this trend does not pass unnoticed. Thus, Warpath, which is certainly not a mere follower of this trend, has been atracting a growing international visibility. Since the launch of their EP "Cataclysm", there was the suspect that this was not an ordinary band. The certainty of this fact came with its first album, "Damnation". Produced by the band, mixed by Orlando Villaseñor (Chimaira, Hate Eternal), mastered by guitarist James Murphy (Testament, Death) and released in independently way, the debut's quality is above average. The guitar work is simply impeccable, just listen to a sample in the track that has the same disc's name. It also must be said about the drumms of James, the perfectly audible bass of Joel, and the voice of Richard (which could have a most frequent presence). What you will hear are 32 minutes of pure old school Thrash Metal. Not for mere reasons, some of the various awards that the band has received from the specialized press, such as "Best Unsigned Band of 2008" by the Terrorizer magazine, are more than deserved. However, this leads to the following question: are we in fact facing a new monster of metal, or because the new generation of metal bands is full of crappy bands, Warpath is being disproportionately glorified? I hope the first option is true.

Average: 8/10
Label: Unsigned
Date of release: 03/??/2008
Website: www.myspace.com/warpathuk /
www.warpath-online.com/

Tracklist:
01. Damnation
02. Infernal
03. Hostile Takeover
04. Face To Face
05. Spitting Blood
06. Life Unworthy Of Life
07. W.M.D
08. Expendable Forces

Shrimp - Gonzo Fishing Trip (English Version)

Experimentalism within the Metal is no longer a new stuff, nor restricted practiced. Thus, the same autophagic tendency observed in other saturated genders (like Metalcore, and more recently represented by the so called Deathcore), applies to it, which means that only the most competent musicians achieve success. And the Californian quartet Shrimp happens to fit with this last selected group. Not for mere reasons, because the members are excellent musicians. The technical skill of all members provides them an impressive versatility. Thus, each of the five songs that comprise their debut EP "Gonzo Fishing Trip", are completely unique, but maintaining a certain standard stablished by the band (which may be difficult to understand, since standard is a concept apparently ignored by the group). On the other hand of what people might think when facing the hillarious and eccentric aspect of this work, that's about a serious record, very well recorded and produced, and with a great visual aspect (owner of an interesting artwork in digipack format). Dealling with an homogeneous quality album, the highlights to be made do not follow a hierarchy. They are, therefore, great passages such as the gummy chorous in "Manifest Democracy", the drummer Justin's solo in "The Lobstrosities" and the collective effort on the excellent "I'll Be Your Huckleberry". Putting in this way, the quartet was very successful in his debut, no doubt about it. And what is allready awesome can be even better: the first full-length is about to come.

Average: 8/10
Label: Originology
Date of release: 05/30/2008
Website: www.myspace.com/shrimptheband

Tracklist:
01. The Lobstrosities
02. Manifest Democracy
03. Loaded To The Gunwalls
04. Decomposed And Cannibalized
05. I'll Be Your Huckleberry