Vile, grim, violent and frostbitten black metal from the irradiated wastelands of Lysychansk in the Ukraine here. Of course it might be a lovely place and all that but on typing it into Google I see third hit is all about the township shooting and burning stray dogs and if the idea of a mobile crematorium roaming around for such purposes does not fill you with horror feel free to check the region out on holiday but I think I will pass. It is with this in mind that it is the perfect breeding ground for Hellhate who are just unleashing their first EP here. The childish cartoon imagery, somewhat at times daft vocal rasps of singer Ugrum and the possibly lost in translation names of some of the tracks make me think this lot might not be the most serious of bands. However once you peel back the layers these five numbers suggest that Hellhate may have something going on in their favour.
Gargles from hell and a military sounding drum tattoo lead into the first number Hellhate. Unfortunately the mid-paced slew lurches away without doing much and finishes quickly with little to define it. ‘Retrsonretap’ hits more of a leaden groove before going into war-man-like drum barrages and a tightly honed melodic charge complete with vocal belches. It pretty much rides over you in a roughshod fashion but there is something compelling about its gnarly determined gait. ‘Up To The Stench’ dispenses with any playing around and simply goes for the kill and layers everything in a solid layer of grime and filth as it powerfully explodes and flattens all around it. It’s the sort of number to make you want to bang that head and some slower more gravid parts may just let you rescue it before it completely falls off your shoulders.
Then we have Your Pain Is My Bread’ which slices and dices away with some shivering guitar lines showing that the band are using their loaf to some extent. The Mardukian annihilation of this one turns things into black toast and… well let’s not go back to that mobile crematorium. If everything has left a nasty taste in your mouth then you just need to remember that ‘Incense Smells Not Better Than Crap’ Yes I guess if this lot play ‘rituals’ they won’t be lighting any joss sticks on stage. It is left to a determined final assault to rattle towards conclusion of this jaunty little exercise in nasty negativity, wrapping it up well in the process.
After a few plays these hymns of hate got beneath the skin and along with the underlying melodic barbarity proved their worth. It will be interesting to see where Hellhate go from here and if a full album appears in the future.
(6.5/10 Pete Woods)
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