MAULE "Maule"

By Dr. Abner Mality

Damn, this shit jams hard! Many bands claim to be keeping the NWOBHM flame burning, but Vancouver's MAULE do more than that...they toss gasoline on that fire and turn it into an inferno!

The band really understands what made that great 78 to 85 era work. They capture the sound not only of the big dogs like ANGELWITCH and BLITZKRIEG, but dive even further into the NWOBHM era and invoke lesser known names like SPARTAN WARRIOR and CRUCIFIXION. Most of the tracks here inject the energy of thrash metal into the more melodic Brit-metal framework...the result is utterly ass-kicking tracks like "Summoner", "Evil Eye" and "Red Sonja" that gallop like hellbound steeds yet are redolent of the melody of classic rock. Everything sounds right...the production is spot-on, the vocals of Jakob Weel have a great mix of aggression and clarity and the guitar screams like a bitch in heat. MAULE just seems to have an intuitive instinct how to write snappy metal songs.

The last two tracks "March of the Dead" and "We Ride" both slow things down a tad to a slightly more measured pace. but for sure, most of MAULE's attack is heavy on speed and precision. Definitely one of the better bands in this subgenre!

GATES OF HELL RECORDS

MAULE