I had never heard of Bloodtribe before I was asked to review them and I have one question. “Why the hell was I not told about them before now?” I was actually a little annoyed by the lack of sharing throughout the metal scene. So, here I am telling you about Bloodtribe, and I assure you, you’re going to want to listen to them.
I was sent the album “Repulse” in the post and was quite
excited when I opened my package. I immediately played it and the second it
finished, I was already uploading it onto my iPod and throwing it in a playlist
with “Bloodbath” and “Cannibal Corpse”. This 5 track E.P. is quite simply
astonishing. It has deep growling vocals which, if turned up loud enough, could
shake the very foundations in which you stand upon.
With Drew on vocals, Tom and Danny on guitar, Clay drumming
and Matt on bass, they have formed a band which could rip the head off your
staggering body. Bloodtribe proves that they have practiced and conquered their
sound because I can’t help but listen from start to finish whenever I hear
them.
The first song on “Repulse” is “Reflections”. My favourite
by far and slowly becoming one of the highest played songs I have in my collection.
This song is phenomenal. I enjoy the dark intro which introduces the drumming
brilliantly. There is no beating around the bush with Drew’s vocal work. He’s
straight into the savage vocals and some great, memorable vocals. “Reflection
of your imperfections double in numbers as your body decays”. I love this
track. Listen to it now or else.
“Manipulated Sexuality” is interesting. The intro contained
a lot of symbol work which I wasn’t expecting and didn’t really think much of
it. I was then getting into the mind-frame that “Repulse” would only have one
decent song. Luckily, I was wrong. This song has some duel vocals with the
heavy shouting vocals which we all love, but it also had screaming and strained
vocals which was an awesome mix. “Manipulated Sexuality” also contains a great
breakdown which I recommend that you indulge yourself in.
The third song is only 2 minutes 20 seconds which I thought
was rather short considering how awesome the song is. There is a great opening
verse in “A Scar for Every Sin” which is quickly paced and savage. You’ll be
aware of the terrific drumming almost immediately. This song is just immense.
“Force Fed Suffering” is pure chaos. 30 seconds in and you
can already feel a sense of an evil doom creeping down, past your ear drums to
eradicate any happiness which remains in your soul (In a good way). Seriously,
this song is the reason why metalheads exist. Pure suffering and brutality
awaits those who listen to this. This song is awesome!
The final song on “Repulse” is smart. I like how it includes
good imagery and some personification “From the dawn that dies”. This makes it
easier to picture and as a result, makes this song memorable. It also contains
some contrasting vocals and music to go with it. At one point you’ll have a
heavy yet slow style of metal but in a seconds notice, we will be listening to
a double bass pedal, quick riffs and a screamo vocal style. Love it!
