Hogslayer Bring The Heavy On Album Number Two

Hailing from the bowels of Cardiff, Hogslayer are officially as heavy as a really heavy thing.  Doom laden sludge right from the get go, some chaotic vocals open proceedings on Slowhawk before a huge riff smacks you right in the face.  It’s a good start.

 

One thing that is instantly noticeable on this album is the low end.  Obviously the guitars are heavily down tuned but it’s the bass that I found one of the best aspects of this album.  It’s like being in the middle of a thunderstorm for the entire nine tracks; the constant rumble is so heavy it’s glorious.

Album highlight "Despiser" sounds downright nasty and there are some nice screeching guitars towards the end.  Songs like "Wulfbaanger", "Bludgeon" and "Warcries" pummel you further in submission but it becomes clear but by this stage it’s getting a little predictable.  We’re not reinventing the wheel here but it does seem that Hogslayer only seem to have one gear and that’s just to roll through everything in their way at mid tempo.

If I have any criticisms it’s that this album maybe started to lose my attention a little in the second half.  I think it’s a slightly front loaded record and I felt that a couple of the songs don’t need to be quite so long.  Bastards of Reality and The Spiteful Cycle both clock in over 7 minutes and for me personally I just felt were a little stretched with not enough going on to justify their length.

Overall though 'Defacer' is a solid release and fans of sludge and doom should give it a shot.  The only thing is though that there are certainly no shortage of these kinds of bands these days so only time will tell if Hogslayer will be able to make a name for themselves in an increasingly saturated market.

To find out more about Hogslayer
click here. To visit the Hogslayer Facebook page
click here. Words by Stuart Patterson

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