Grab your motorcycles and put on your denim, WA’s Death Dependant hearken back to an older age of metal before the mosh pit while incorporating all the punch and shred of thrash to produce a damn engaging album to keep you hooked.
I would be inclined to compare this band with classic speedy metal acts like Exciter, Hirax and Enforcer but I think this is far too simple of a characterisation. While sharing the vocals and attitude of these bands, for the most part, they are much more musically aligned with the heavier, more roughneck thrash camp.
The rhythm section delivers brilliantly here to complement the swaggering vocals with a crunchier kick to bring this harder edge to Death Dependant’s sound. Furthermore, the old school early 80’s speed metal feel I get, comes from not so much me perceiving an attempt to conform to the style of these types of band but rather I believe they arrive here in their own way… naturally by combining the melodic upbeat feel of an Iron Maiden/Black Sabbath with an underlying Overkill/Testament thrash metal basis. This blend of influences would be all the ingredients for a killer album, but are the songs any good?
Overwhelmingly, I would go out on a limb and say yes. They are catchy and super-memorable without sacrificing any of the things we love about metal (as should be evident by the massive amounts of guitar interludes and solos – I’m confident there was at least more than one for every song!). For some highlights, I would suggest the opener shredder ‘Bound for Hell‘, a good representative of the band’s overall brisk galloping sound, sure to encourage some neck flailing. Along with this, the hyper-charged, Paranoid-era Sabbath sounding ‘Demons till Death‘, the upbeat fist-pumping ‘Drug machine‘ and the vitriolic curb-stomper ‘Hate‘ are some of the tracks that I’m sure to give a re-listen.
It would also be worth mentioning this album’s well-titled ballad ‘Memories‘ is definitely not a tame or formulaic snoozer. Guitars are up front-and-centre for this one and they contribute well into a noteworthy foray in a more melancholic, singalong style before some absolutely destroying instrumentals.
I would say that there should be no illusions as to whether they meet expectations. The songs are catchy, virtuosic and played with a kind of restraint that ties the album together well in a themed way, while still mixing things up to create a really enjoyable listening experience.
Death Dependant: Facebook
Release Year: 2014
Label: self-released
Category: Album
Country: Australia
Reviewed by Jay
