Released: 2005
Switchblade carves out an impressive modern death and thrash attack, one that is expertly encapsulated on this debut. The follow-up is due out anytime now, so before it surfaces, let's take a look at The End of All Once Known.
It never ceases to amaze me how heart-thumpingly good Australia's bands are and how well they compare with their better-known cousins offshore; this is yet another criminally-overlooked local band unleashing an album that would ritualistically slaughter some of the generic crap that the big European labels seem to sign up every couple of weeks. The End of All Once Known combines killer melodies with hook-ridden headbanging riffage, duck's-arse tight timekeeping and an enormous vocal onslaught. What Switchblade also displays here is an ability to blend an array of inspirations and styles rather than just sounding like one particularly influencing act. This gives them a somewhat original sound in a genre crowded with faceless clones.
On "Wings of Redemption" Switchblade takes on a melodic thash guise; elsewhere, such as with "Convulse" they show far more brutal tendencies but never does one aspect of the band's sound overshadow any of the others. This mix of ingredients made The End of All Once Known one of the better metal releases of 2005, so prepare for the new one because it should make this one look tame.
- Declaration of Hatred
- Wings of Redemption
- Stabbing Machine
- Convulse
- Cataclysm
- Dissect
- Concrete
- Tremors
- Eradicate
- Incineration
Rating: 90%
No comments:
Post a Comment