STEREO NASTY
“TWISTING THE BLADE”
Album Review By Iron Mathew

10/10

Stereo Nasty are a heavy metal band from the Republic Of Ireland formed in 2013 releasing their debut album ‘Nasty By Nature’ in 2015. The bands second album ‘Twisting The Blade’ was released in 2017.

The album kicks off in gloriously furious fashion with the eighties NWOBHM influenced ‘Kill Or Be Killed’. With its throaty rasp of a vocal performance, the buzzing guitar sound and a galloping rhythm, the four piece band are quickly into their stride with an energetic “foot on the monitor” style opening foray. The bombastic barrage continues with the heavy hard rock style of ‘No One Gets Out Alive’. Evoking a similarity with British icons Judas Priest, ‘No One Gets Out Alive’ is big riffing and thunderous. With only nine songs on offer across thirty five minutes the album is light on numbers, but what is offered, is of superb quality. Energy and intensity levels go smashing through the roof as ‘Reflections Of Madness’ romps into view and buzzes away like a chainsaw. Taking on a heavier tone than the opening two songs, ‘Reflections Of Madness’ is a thunderous rampage.

Adopting a more melodic hard rock approach, ‘Near Dark’ is a foot stomping mid tempo thump. Throughout the album, the guitar sound is straight outta the eighties NWOBHM buzz style and raises the forearm hairs high. The excitement and feel good factor of the music on offer is terrific. ‘Through The Void’ clocks in at almost seven minutes in length and is by far and away the longest song on the album. Epic in nature, a mellow intro guides the listener gently in, before exploding into life with a doom heavy guitar riff and the mightiest foot stomping rhythm you’re ever likely to hear outside of a Manowar album… ‘Through The Void’ does change pace and charges ahead with electrifying energy and purpose. What an epic song, a song that sits at halfway through the album. Intensity remains high as ‘Haunting The Night’ bustles in and foot stomps heavily on its way. Featuring again a Judas Priest influence, ‘Haunting The Night’ is a superb slice of heavy rock.

The title song ‘Twisting The Blade’ is one of my favourite songs off the album. The buzzing guitar chug is simply awesome and reminds me so much of the heady days of the NWOBHM evolution during the eighties, a time when I was growing up, listening to Judas Priest, Iron Maiden and Saxon, falling in love with their sound, a sound I am still in love with today… ‘Vengeance’ is a two minute instrumental, that gives the listener a welcome breather from the overwhelming intensity of the album, and sets up the final song. There is an old saying “the best ’til last” and that is exactly what Stereo Nasty have done. ‘Becoming A Beast’ is an emphatic way to end an album, the blistering pace and awesome guitar buzz is exhilarating. ‘Becoming A Beast’ brought a huge smile of enjoyment to my face and had me insanely head banging and thumping my feet on the floor. The impact that Stereo Nasty have made over just thirty five minutes is massive and to end the album with the glorious ‘Becoming A Beast’, they are a band to look out for as the new year dawns.

Overall, an impressive hard rocking romp of NWOBHM influenced hard rock/metal, infectious and addictive with an extremely high amount of energy and intensity.

TRACKLIST

Kill Or Be Killed
No One Gets Out Alive
Reflections Of Madness
Near Dark
Through The Void
Haunting The Night
Twisting The Blade
Vengeance
Becoming A Beast

https://stereonasty.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/stereonastyire/
https://twitter.com/StereoNastyIRE

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