Hellbastard
Eco War
SelfMadeGod
2009
British
lords of Crust thrash crossover deliver a quick jab to the gut with
their Eco War EP which consists of 4 original songs, a Slayer cover and
a useless track of studio tomfoolery. For me the latest
Hellbastard was a failure of sorts. But the smaller dose I get
from this EP is perhaps better for me. Eco war starts off with a
reprise of Gone Postal. Some strange guitar harmonics and wierd
squeals serve to unsettle the listener while sparse samples set a mood
of ominous bleakness. Hardcore roots surface during Sea Shepherd.
Then Powerful thrash riffs settle in for some crushing power and
groove-oriented obliteration to close out the song. Woe the
People flies in from left field with a doomy Sabbath riff and a fun
sense of glee to motivate the oppressive merriment that possesses the
mood of the track. Those Hammond organ and psychedlic guitars are
a nice touch. The best track of the EP is Massacre
which crawls with Slayer inspired aggression on its opening
passage of thrash infused mayhem. A hardcore sense of dynamics
and attitude dominate the latter sections of the track. The cover
of Slayer's Die By The Sword is pretty faithful to the original though
a tiny bit sloppier and not as aggressive and captivating somehow.
The final listed track is Kick the Geordie which is a recording
of some silly conversations and kid related nonsense, totally
worthless. Showing their musical diversity and songwriting
prowess, Hellbastard achieve a sense of immediacy and power that their
latest full length album was lacking.