text: Oscar Wendt
Warfist
Metal to the Bone
Godz Ov War Productions
October 30th, 2016
Blood, sex and thrash metal! All with a hint of evil and wickedness! If you’re not familiar with Warfist, drop everything and reduce your backlog! After their 2014 debut album, The Devil Lives in Grünberg, they are ready to prove that he actually dwells in Zielona Góra, Poland instead. Is the new album really, as its title suggests, Metal to the Bone?
The metal fist of war strikes from the very beginning. No fucking about, no unnecessary intros, just straight to the point with the hateful thrash metal! First thing that comes to your mind is a much rougher production in comparison to The Devil Lives in Grünberg, which actually works in favour of the music. It just appears to be more suitable to the Warfist spirit and character. Very rhythmic riffs and classic thrash metal tempo are embellished with some occasional black metal tricks. All in all, fantastic first impressions!
The more you dig into Metal to the Bone, the more you find some great elements which form a rather nice offering and a really cool album to listen to on all those cold autumn evenings. Always with beer or some cheap wine! Wrath’s indefatigable vocals are another strong point of the record, nicely blended into the music rather than staying in the foreground. They don’t stand in a way of all those crushing riffs which makes it easier to absorb the album really quickly.
Warfist doesn’t revel in mercy and benevolence. Metal to the Bone is a constant battle and you can look to catch your breath to no avail. Breed to War is the only sign of goodwill and, with its slow and monumental beginning, it can let you have some rest from this thrash metal madness. I love how it changes tempo in the middle and, I think, that makes it my favourite track from Metal to the Bone. Oh yeah, and tell me that charismatic shouting is not going to make it a live hit…
This is another album which is graced by the cover art perfectly reflecting the band and the release itself. The author, Maciej Kamuda, has done a brilliant job designing graphics that are a visual incarnation of Warfist. And oh yeah, it satisfies my fetish for symmetry! Good tattoo design? I guess so…
To answer the first paragraph’s question – yes, new Warfist album is definitely Metal to the Bone! The fantastic balance between the thrash metal and some black metal composites makes it a strong player with a lot of perspectives. The strong package that Warfist offers is surely able to break through and with Metal to the Bone, they are proving they know exactly what they mean. Keep it up, thrash metal needs you!
Maciej Kamuda Art
Godz Ov War Productions
Warfist
THE GOAT TAVERN 