Release date: 16 April, 2020
Label: Stygian Black Hand
Release type: Full-length
Best track: Storm Chariot
ASM’s brand of War Metal is not quite what you expect. Let me rephrase that: ASM definitely plays War Metal. It’s blasting, unforgiving and will demolish anything that crosses its path, including you. Where they excel and rise above most other releases in the genre (in this album in particular) is adding subtlety and groove.
Sounds like an oxymoron, but try Storm Chariot out. It’s a relentless beating but it also takes time for some slower, almost melodic passages (the horror!) before getting back into the business of pummeling you to a pulp.
A clubbing of the listener’s eardrums and a proclamation of intent: this means War. And we’re doing it with style.