Hellripper – Warlocks Grim & Withered Hags
7/10
The first thing that strikes me with Hellrippers new release is that it does sound less raw and more sophisticated.
The influences from black metal are a bit more polished now and the more thrash and somewhat more straight metal influences are more apparent. I would almost go as far as to say thar Hellripper is flirting with the progressive side.
Development is good sometimes. I can be, and I willingly admit be a stickler for change. But I like this change and road towards more diversity. You can still hear that an album of much inspiration is Metallica’s Kill em All. There is no doubt in my mind that album has played a big part in what Hellripper is, was and will be.
Hellripper is also mostly a one-man band. Still. James McBain has on this album recruited some help with bagpipes from Antonio Rodriguez and some lead Guitar help from Joseph Quinlan.
James growling & howling is also a bit more towards what you hear from groups like Tribulation and Midnight. As for modern bands I would put Hellripper closer to Midnight.
Starting with “The Nuckelavee” the tempo is full blast from the first note, but here I feel straight away that we are more polished and clean. The blackened parts are there, but they are less dirty and smelly if you know what I mean? The riffs and structure of the song is also pleasurable. This is a theme that goes through the album. Nowhere does it flake out and become chaotic. I find the chaos in old black metal to be to overpowering and just noisy. I prefer the newer releases where you don´t have to focus on being evil and rotten as much as making good music.
The title track offers an almost Alice in Chains smelling intro and the song goes into a heavier song that also pays homage to McBain´s heritage incorporating bagpipes and generally lending some Celtic influences.
If you are a sucker for Motörhead smelling extreme music, you will like the track “The Hissing Marshes”. You almost feel Lemmy wrote the bassline for this song.
The album ends up with my favorite song of the album: “Mester Stoor Worm”. An epic 8:31 minutes of hard music. It blends classic heavy black metal with a more up to date feel and sound. Majestic is the word to sum the song up.
In closing, this is a fully competent album. Mixing and mastering leaves little to wish for. And yes, I know it sounds quite clean, but clean is nice. Demo tape sounding recordings are not fun. I for one want to make out what I am listening to and not just feel like my car stereo is locked between to FM stations. I like this and I hope that Hellripper decides to go on tour, because I think that it would be a cool show.
Band: Hellripper
Title: Warlocks Grim & Withered Hags
Label: Peaceville Records
Date of release: 2023-02-17
Rate: 7/10
Stand Out Track: Mester Stoor Worm
Country of Origin: Scotland
Playing Time: 43:07
