Death Wolf: II Black Armoured Death

Growing up, some of the neighborhood kids used to say "H. E. Double Hockey Sticks" instead of "Hell." I guess they worried that saying the word "Hell" itself could bring about some kind of mysterious consequence they didn't want to know about. In any event, we all knew what they meant and learned how to spell the word without any trouble at all. The members of Death Wolf spell the word with only one hockey stick. Is there some other place called "Hel" that I don't know about?

Death Wolf is an awesome name for a band; it brings to mind a riff-centered biker group, the kind that plays meaty chords and wears long braided beards. This album doesn't quite capture that image, nor does it capture that sound. I'm not judging their sound on my imagination, but I was less-than-impressed with this release.

Things start out well enough. The opening track "Noche de Brujas" is a fast and catchy song that stole the show for me. As I listened I made a note to include this song on all my future playlists for the foreseeable future. The second song, "World Serpent," comes in as a close second. The rest of the album, though, has an inconsistent quality to it, one that explores slower, moodier sounds that don't quite work. I was particularly disappointed with "Luciferian Blood Covenant," an instrumental track that is very minimal in its songwriting and melody. To my ears, it was just an arpeggio repeated over and over again with a wordless and minimal melody thrown in for an extra shot of mood. It was all too simple and didn't seem to have anywhere to go.

There's a good band here, especially when they are playing in the fast, more aggressive style of the opening tracks. I don't expect any band to play in only one style, nor do I think they should try to please my own tastes, but sometimes they mix things up too soon. These guys ought to give us more of what they're truly good at. Give "Noche de Brujas" a listen.

Track Listing:
1. Noche de Brujas
2. World Serpent
3. Lord of Putrefaction
4. Darkness of Hel
5. Sudden Bloodletter
6. Malice Striker
7. Night Stalker
8. Luciferian Blood Covenant
9. Black Armoured Death
10. Death Wolf March
11. Little Black Angel
12. Snake Mountain
13. Rothenburg

Added: March 22nd 2013
Reviewer: Carl Sederholm
Score:
Related Link: Band Website
Hits: 1829
Language: english

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