Killer Be Killed
Nuclear Blast
Much will be made of the sum of the parts that make up Killer Be Killed. With a pedigree that boasts bands like Soulfly, Mastodon and The Dillinger Escape Plan, it results in a beast with blood on its teeth, spitting out the tattered remains of a chew toy and the neighbour’s cat.
Killer Be Killed, as a result, is kind of a big deal. Rather than come across as some bizarre Gregg Gillis mash-up experiment, the day job of each band member is blended into something fresh and new. It’s ferociously confident in its approach and confidently ferocious in its execution, leaping from clenched-fist choruses (Wings Of Feather And Wax, Melting Of My Marrow) to drilling riffs that require so much head-banging it would leave Willow Smith in a neck brace.
There is barely a moment of reflection, or even a chance to catch your breath. Then again, listeners needing either of those things probably wouldn’t be interested in this album to begin with.
A world away from the usual kind of supergroup indulgence, Killer Be Killed feels like the start of something truly promising. It’s a world where there’s only one rule: don’t you dare listen at any volume below maximum.
DAVID JAMES YOUNG
