Embedded Files
ZANJEER “Seher-e-Maqhoor”
ZANJEER “Seher-e-Maqhoor”
SURA’SURA “Warfare Metal”
SURA’SURA “Warfare Metal”
By Dr. Abner Mality
I’ve always been interested in metal from far-flung places and different ethnic communities. And I’m always rooting for them to succeed. Here we have a couple of bands with roots in Southeast Asia and Pakistan. How do they fare?
In the case of Sri Lanka’s SURA’SURA, not very well, I’m afraid. A lot of metal from the island nations of Southeast Asia tend to be either war metal or goregrind. SURA’SURA tries to be war metal, but winds up being unendurable noise. “Warfare Metal” is an EP under 10 minutes in length; why on God’s green earth they would waste two and a half minutes of it with a worthless intro called “Decree” is an absolute mystery. War metal only works when there are actual riffs and a thick bottom end to anchor things. Here we have neither. It just sounds thin and nasty. The only thing coming close to an actual cool moment was the slower riffs at the very end of “Sura’Sura”. All else is a vapid, talentless void. A tragedy.
ZANJEER, happily, is a different story. Although based in Berlin, these guys have a strong Pakistani/Urdu presence and they deliver all their angry lyrics in Urdu. They race through ten angry tracks that are a cross between NUCLEAR ASSAULT style thrash and grindcore. Unlike SURA’SURA, the riffs bite deep and are easy to discern without losing ferocity. These dudes also don’t waste time…longest track “A.T.M.” is under 3 minutes and most are less than 2. If you like D.R.I. and PHOBIA, this is worth tracking down.
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