WICKED SMILE/DISTORTA
WICKED SMILE “Night Time Riders” EP
DISTORTA “A Devil In The Dust” EP
By Dr. Abner Mality
Let’s head to the land of Oz to check out a couple of new EP’s from metal bands trying to grab that elusive brass ring…
WICKED SMILE not only look like they could have come from 1984 Britain but they sound like it, too. This is straight up heavy metal, definitely influenced by the NWOBHM but also going a little later than that, with some late 80’s influence as well. I can’t really find major fault with these guys, yet somehow “Night Time Riders” comes across as a bit generic. It’s meant as metal comfort food and fulfills that function but there’s something about it that’s just too easy, too typical. Not that I’m looking for deathcore or djent here, but it’s by the numbers. Song titles like “Scream and Shout” and “Never Surrender” kind of give the game away. That being said, every song rocks hard with catchy riffs and singer Danny Cecati has a very strong voice. They need a bit of pepper to add to this dish.
DISTORTA plays a heavier and more modern game, but also haven’t hit their full potential yet. On the surface, this is groove metal mixed with melodic death metal and even heavy nu-metal and on the surface, it also sounds like typical “tough guy” crash and bash. But there is something that helps elevate it and make it more memorable and that’s an unusual approach to vocals. Lead singer Dmitriy Keremetskiy has a powerful bull-like bellow that borders on death metal territory, but what catches my ear are the smoothly flowing melodic vocals on the chorus. There is something almost hypnotic about the very appealing way they flow on “The Tomorrow People”, the title track and “Suffocate”. It compliments Keremetskiy’s roars in such a cool way, it’s hard to describe but potent. And although the groove-thrash riffs on the EP are nothing we haven’t heard before, they, too, seem to roll along in an aggressive yet not over the top way. I wouldn’t say DISTORTA has reached the Promised Land yet, but there is potential here for something much bigger.
Both bands have their good points, but I think DISTORTA edges out WICKED SMILE this time.