A post thrash/melodic metal 5 piece from Brisbane with a 5 track EP.
I saw these guys play at Metal Heart and they did not disappoint, as they worked hard to get the crowd into it.
They are no strangers to the metal scene with members of legendary Australian acts D7, Sausage Chopper, Reapers Riddle and Abreact.
They open with Get out, a slower piece with a southern groove guitar. The singer drives his threatening hardcore style vocals over the top of it.
It feels like a very mature band despite this being their first album all playing together, and this is the most melodic piece on the album. There is, however, zero filler or 5-minute solos on this album. These tracks are all reasonably concise and pointed straight at your jugular.
Backburner is more uptempo and definitely feels like one to start the action in a live show. This is a powerful beast of a song and creates that feeling of strong momentum. The guitar sound is huge and thick as it carves into the slower grooves into the second half of the song.
Halfwit steps up the pressure with an aggressive punk feel in the verses before the massive pre-chorus riff. The tempo grinds right down as Evil Eye takes it right to the edge with some Pantera style attitude. This is a monster track and if I was asked by someone what Evil Eye was like and I only had one song to play them, it would be this. My pick of the album.
Fall begins with fast chugging with some formidable drumming, and I am sure I remember seeing them play this live to quite a few banging heads. These changes and stops are super tight.
Disobey brings us to the end of the album, and not surprisingly they choose to finish strongly. The vocalist is right in from the start of the song and screaming “where did we all go wrong?” What I really like about these guys is they are able to not only create the riffs but still generate a compelling chorus. Too often bands will find one sweet part of the song and do not know where to take it, so the whole song will just consist of variations of that killer riff. The experience they bring is clear, as is the commitment these songs are delivered with.
It’s also worth remembering Brisbane has a history of breakthrough punk/hardcore bands like the Saints and the infamous Dreamkillers which have certainly shaped some of our sounds. You could say frustration and anger are some of the things that we do very well. So if you want to hear lots of silly melodic vocal tricks or rap-metal hybrids, this is probably not the band for you.
On the other hand, if you want to hear a band that can deliver the riffs, the intensity and the performance without pretension, then look no further.
Evil Eye: Facebook
Release Year: 2014
Label: self-released
Category: EP
Country: Australia
Reviewed by Matt
