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The Unknown

    
       
       
       
     
             
Evile are a thrash metal band from the UK formed in 2002, releasing six albums during their twenty year career to date - 'Enter The Grave' (2007), 'Infected Nations' (2009), 'Five Serpent's Teeth' (2011), 'Skull' (2013), 'Hell Unleashed' (2021), and 'The Unknown', emerging in 2023.    
             
Over the years, Evile have shared a stage with the likes of Exodus, Kreator, Machine Head, Megadeth, and Overkill, and performed at a number of metal festivals including Bloodstock Open Air, Sonisphere, and Wacken to name just a few. The bands current line-up features founding member Ben Carter (drums), along with Ol Drake (vocals, guitar), Adam Smith (guitar) and Joel Graham (bass), with new album 'The Unknown' a ten song, forty six minute roller coaster of melodic thrash metal heavily influenced by the iconic Bay Area sound! 'The Unknown' opens with the title song 'The Unknown' - a frightening march of slow and heavy doom inspired eeriness! Evile are menacing here, setting a scary atmosphere that might just send shivers down the spines of many listeners...    
             
...for 'The Unknown' (the song) is that foreboding! Maintaining the high level of menace 'The Mask We Wear' swaggers on with authority and aplomb, hitting much harder than the previous song - the band delivering the kind of thrash metal I expected from Metallica in the nineties following their self titled "black" album. Not the drivel that went by the titles 'Load' and 'Reload' (insert unhappy emoji here). At least Evile know how to thrash with an immense melodious intent! 'Monolith' opens with a glorious eighties sounding guitar riff, proceeding to pummel the senses with an intense barrage of jack hammering - the band blending doom and groove metal to absolute perfection. Even the great foursomes of thrash from America and Germany don't get the blend sounding this fucking good! And at over seven minutes in length, 'When Mortal Coils Shed' is the longest song on offer by a country mile - the band maintaining their breath taking stance of menace and fear. Maybe even introducing a little elegance too, for 'When Mortal Coils Shed' slides effortlessly through ballad territory to a hymn-like stance, eventually appearing at the altar of the anthemic! Such an incredible mix, Evile's new album is a very infectious listen - and we're not even half way through yet!    
             
And for the first time, blistering speed lights up 'The Unknown' (the album) in the mighty shape of the fast paced 'Sleepless Eyes'. Ferocity and aggression are rife here, the band showing a clean pair of heels, rampaging forth faster than the speed of fucking light! Definitely one for the worlds head bangers, 'Sleepless Eyes' will test neck muscles to the limit. And beyond! Evile have injected a phenomenal amount of energy, turning the album on its head from slow and heavy to fast and heavier - the album galloping on at pace with 'Out Of Sight' pounding the ground hard, shaking buildings to their foundations and banging the head of every single metalhead around the world. An incredible one-two of sheer head bang ability, the band return the jack hammer style riffing from earlier - 'At Mirror's Speech' melding every style of metal heard so far... And then some! The infectious level of 'The Unknown' (the album) is already sky high, the band cranking it up even higher!    
             
Power is ramped up a few more notches for 'Reap What You Sow', the level of intensity entering new territory! As the album has progressed, the thrash metal on offer has just gotten better and better, the band firing on all cylinders to deliver one of the best melodic thrash metal albums of the year! And with only two songs remaining, the band return the incredible level of menace heard at the outset of the album - 'Beginning Of The End' once again sending shivers down the spine! Yet the intensity level remains as devastating as ever, Evile unrelenting in their pursuit to deliver crushing yet melodic thrash metal. Bringing the album to a close, 'Balance Of Time' is a final hurrah of scorching pace, aggression and brutality - the band giving the head bangers of the world one more chance to wreck their necks!    
             
Overall, an intense and infectious journey of melodic thrash metal punctuated with speed, doom and groove metal inspirations.    
             
             
Review by Iron Mathew Collins    
             
Review is also featured at Metal-Roos    
             
             
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