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Livin' On The Bad Side

    
       
       
       
     
             
Crimson Storm are a heavy/power metal band from Italy formed in 2009 by guitarist Lögan Heads (Löanshark), the band releasing to date two E.P.'s - 'Motor City Maniac' (2014) and 'Outrageous' (2020), and one album 'Livin' On The Bad Side'...    
             
...emerging in 2024 featuring nine songs across a ferocious thirty three minutes! And when I say ferocious, I mean ferociously fast - so fast in fact, that many of the worlds speed and thrash metal bands are left in Crimson Storm's wake! The Italian four-piece - comprising vocalist Pau Correas (Redshark, Wicked Leather), bass player Aless Oppossed (Löanshark) and drummer Pol Esteban (No Amnesty) alongside founder Lögan - are on fucking fire, setting new land speed records at every twist and turn of 'Livin' On The Bad Side'. The frenetic energy pouring outta the album is like nothing I've heard for a very long time - I reckon I'd have to go right back to the eighties with the emergence of speed metal to find anyone who comes anything close to Crimson Storm, the Italian band merging the genres of speed, power, traditional, and even thrash metal into one glorious gallop guaranteed to blow yer fucking socks off!    
             
And head bang yer head right off yer fucking shoulders too, 'Night Of The Tyrant' a one minute highly anticipative instrumental that builds a tremendous amount of tension - the band storming outta the gates at a hundred miles an hour with 'Raging Eyes Of Darkness'. And a level of head bang ability higher than the sky, the ferocious pace a meld of thrash metal aggression and the immensely melodic nature of classic heavy metal, 'Raging Eyes Of Darkness' leaving every listener's mouths wide open in stunned amazement! A jaw dropping opener to grab everyone's attention, Crimson Storm increase the pace to an outrageous level as 'Outrageous' takes flight faster than the speed of fucking light! The band are smashing every speed limit known to man - and probably quite a few unknown to man as well, 'Outrageous' violently banging the heads of every metaller and thrasher on the planet! Yet for all of the bands explosive speed, the melodious intent of the opening brace is spot on - has there ever been a more perfect start to a metal album!    
             
Crimson Storm are a like a force ten hurricane, devastating everything in their path with phenomenal power, 'Abuse Of Power' maintaining the incredible start 'Livin' On The Bad Side' has made, the ferocity driven metal on show sending the worldwide mosh pits into fucking overdrive! I dunno where the band get all their energy from, they must have a supply equal to or greater than that of the Sun - widely agreed as the biggest source of energy on planet Earth - 'Nightmare Deceiver' entering the fray with a glorious NWOBHM guitar tone and feel, the band dropping a gear to plant their collective feet firmly on the old school heavy metal monitor! And for someone like me who is old school through and through, 'Nightmare Deceiver' reminds me fondly of the eighties when I was a teenager, growing up listening to the likes of Angel Witch, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and Saxon define and shape the sound of heavy metal! Bloody great times those were too - as are the times right now with Crimson Storm bringing a forty year old sound to the modern day and adding a tonne more energy, gusto and drive! Electrifying speed makes an emphatic return as 'Speed Hammerin' Metal' does exactly what it says on the tin - the band hurtling right through the heart of heavy metal territory at an astonishing pace! Good luck keeping up with Crimson Storm in terms of head banging, 'cause I don't think the human neck muscles are designed to move back and forth that fucking quick!    
             
And out of the nine songs on offer, 'Harakiri Rendez-Vous' is the only one to exceed five minutes in length - and what a five minutes! From its mellow first thirty seconds or so, to its bouncy, upbeat NWOBHM inspired gallop, 'Harakiri Rendez-Vous' is infectious to the max, every listener, fan and follower falling head over heels in love with this one! I defy anyone to not have felt the band tug at the heart strings as the iconic galloping nature of old school heavy metal surges forth - Crimson Storm returning ferocity driven metal to the fore in the shape of the aggression fuelled 'Headfukker'. The speed here is faster than the speed of light, the band delivering a chant style chorus that's gonna be shouted, screamed and screeched by everyone everywhere! And by everyone, I mean all eight billion people on the planet - so come on everybody, all together now "Headfukker! Headfukker". Simply sensational stuff - 'Livin' On The Bad Side' coming to an end with the Spanish sung 'Seven Days Of Mayhem'. And the speed here too is fucking phenomenal, Crimson Storm maintaining a red hot pace right from the start until the very last second. What an album and what a band!    
             
Overall, foot to the floor pace with sky high head bang ability, 'Livin' On The Bad Side' is a glorious jaw dropping heavy metal gallop.    
             
             
Review by Iron Mathew Collins    
             
Reviewed for Metal Gods TV    
             
             
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