Album Review: Axewound - Vultures

As band names go, nothing could be more ludicrous and totally out off left field than metal's newest supergroup Axewound, but thankfully there is a lot of substance here than what the band's name may suggest. Fronted by Cancer Bats singer Liam Cormier doing the screaming vocal thing, melodic vocals by Bullet For My Valentine's Matt Tuck, and rounded out by members of Pitchshifter, Glamour Of The Kill and Rise To Remain, Vultures is an intense album comprising ten brutal tracks of insane riff-a-mania. There are times when parts of some tracks sound like BFMV, but these are thankfully short-lived.

Post Apocalyptic Party holds down a deep groove with some subtle Slipknot influences creeping in, whilst Cold is a more up-tempo chord-based song with some classic screamed verses and sung chorus. Title and opening track Vultures shows off the band's energy with a blistering intro before breaking unrelentlessly into a barrage of time changes and fat rhythmic sections. Exochrist borders on generic if it weren't for an inspired bridge that is way too short to be much more than an afterthought. The piano and keys intro to Collide at first is somewhat out of place amongst the barrage of metal, yet provides needed contrast for the more brash numbers like Blood Money And Lies and Victim Of The System to shine.

Vultures is, with a few exceptions, a dirge-filled angry metal record that the two frontmen might not have been able to fully realise with their main projects. The album doesn't play out like riffs have been cut and pasted to suit each song; every track has its own individual character and highlights the apparent musical aptitude of the band's members.