Monday, March 4, 2013

... Prepare the Crown : DIESEL KING "The Grey Man"

DIESEL KING is a 5 piece Sludge Metal outfit coming from London. Formed in late 2010, they released a 1st EP called "The Ancient and the Nameless" about one year ago and following this - gave many gigs along with C.O.C., Ramesses, Karma to Burn, Grand Magus, etc.... not forgetting a noticed performance at London's Desertfest last year ! also add to this, some praise from reknown press (they're included on Metal Hammer's compliation "Sons of Sabbath") and colleagues, particularly a mention on Kent Stump's (Wo Fat) end of year list in 4th position, a recent invitation to take part in the next edition of the Bloodstock festival... and you've got a more precise idea about the high potential of this future british sovereign !
Before this important first appearance in a major festival and other interesting  live perspectives to come in between, it was then logical to release some new stuff to thicken their setlist and sate the growing fans appetite; in a certain logic and continuity, one could have thought about a full-length album as next step but the band decided to put out a new 2nd EP instead, no precipitation in this overcrowded scene is rather a wise principle these days and we still got 5 blasting new songs (30 minutes) on "The Grey Man" released today !!!

DIESEL KING describe their music as a brutal blend of dirty sludge and down tempo heavy metal which the first song "Battered Hag" quickly confirms. Enveloped carefully in a massive and crushing sound, the METAL textures are indeed very much prominent but in a large pannel of HEAVY sounds which make the music always entertaining with constant dynamics. 
Just in this song and all in an amazingly cohesive way, you can find a slow infectious doom-laden riff as starter, followed by a massive mid-tempo that Entombed could have composed if turned on mode-sludge, a sludgy  crawling part with throaty shrieks and growls, at times we're more close to Coffinworm here than Down (often cited as obvious influence on D.K. debut) and shit this is bloody killer !!!  

The title song of the EP comes in 2nd row and starts in an original way, with just the drums and guitar dissonance in the back, like an introduction to an imminent execution which is really the case, with simple riffs but effective musicianship the guys hit hard and crush. The NOLA influences can still be slightly noticed, but here again the brutality of the rythmic and roughness of the vocals are really monstruous and in my opinion place the band in other sickest categories or maybe just simply prove that the band is finding its own sound ! When you listen the dual guitar and soloing in this one, you can't tell you anything else than "fuck those guys did a fuckin' good job here !" and not just in this one...

"... To the Bloodbank" is the shortest piece of the album, the most brutal and fastest too, it has a brutal HC tempo, different that's sure but in the end this is the  equivalent of a Trouble Maker Makes Trouble on The Disease Concept 1st EP : a delightful release like the fight club was supposed to be !

"Immurement" comes back to more metallic basis, the alternance of brutal parts and slow crushingness is more predictable though, despite another effective solo and great roaring - it is not as memorable as the other songs and doesn't have an heady riff like in the masterful closer "Blind Torture Kill" which is a monster of heaviness, the basic riff sounds unexpectedly again like the typical chainsaw swedish guitar-sound but on mode doom this time (totally killer) ! it's ending sickly with dissonance to definitely anchor the king vociferations and malevolent sounds in your now converted soul...

More than in many other styles of music (I'm of course not including modern shit in that) the mark of the biggest in contemporary METAL has often been the relative simplicity of their songs but also their uncompromising brutality, add a solid musicianship, a charismatic singer and there's good chances to see your name quickly under the highlights, DIESEL KING got all this and until now is faultless in its trajectory... This is highly recommended stuff !!!


http://dieselking.bigcartel.com/product/the-grey-man-ep
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