WOLFBRIGADE - "RUN WITH THE HUNTED" (2017)

WOLFBRIGADE - "RUN WITH THE HUNTED"
(Running time: 26:51 minutes; 10 songs)
("Southern Lord Recordings"; 2017; CD):

Hey guys, yes, I am back at the regular work up here and so here already now incoming is the first 'really new' post after the (sort of...) 'mandatory' retrospection post on 2017, yes, and so now here you get my record-review on the larger-than-life 2017 masterpiece of/by the absolutely almighty WOLFBRIGADE from Sverige titled "RUN WITH THE HIUNTED", the successor album to/of their 2012 immortal masterpiece "DAMNED" (also released back then via "SOUTHERN LOTRD RECORDINGS"), and it was released at the 28th of april of 2017 and this of course (again) by/through/via "SOUTHERN LORD RECORDINGS". WOLFBRIGADE's "RUN WITH THE HUNTED" features ten new songs in roughly half-an-hour of a total running time, yes, and this would be sort of the only 'critical-point' of it because that's simply not much of a running time anyhow anyway... but WOLFBRIGADE really manage to make up for this with two huge points: (1.) "RUN WITH THE HUNTED" is so massively and 'overwhelmingly' intense that it definitely 'devastatingly' destroys absolutely everything and atomizes de facto everyone in its way in this shortly twenty-seven minutes so that it leaves no questions unanswered and no wishes unfullfilled; (2.) WOLFBRIGADE are simply that incredible damn good, nah, they are that larger-than-life great that this roughly twenty-seven minutes are packed up full with a so high skilled songwriting that beneath the overwhelming intensity and also all the high'n'tight atmosphere, beneath the brutal and yet all the time melodic and diverse massacre an incredible amount of multi-variations and diversity is waiting, enriching and cultivating it all massively and just waiting there to be discovered by all of you outta there. WOLFBRIGADE were founded back then in 1995 as WOLFPACK and they conquered me sort of instantly back then with their massively impressive debut full-length-album "A NEW DAWN FADES" and from then on and on and on and on, all the time, always. In 1999 then they changed from WOLFPACK to WOLFBRIGADE and... continued to conquer me supremely and this also all the time. Their 2012 masterpiece "DAMNED" was (in my book) back then their so far crowning chapter of their impressive career and discography... and now we have 2017 and... nah, sorry, bullshit... we (have) had 2017 and "RUN WITH THE HUNTED" was unleashed at the world, hell yeahr, and I don't know how they did it but they 'at least' hold on to "DAMNED" on the exact same larger-than-life level but I would even go so far to/and say that "RUN WUTH THE HUNTED" even is a step ahead, yes, that totally amazing and absoultely fantastic it is. This is at its core highest intensity Crustcore with some beefy'n'bulky D-Beat roots in it as well as truckloads of devastating (Sverige) Death Metal and just looking at respectively listening to some of the melodic and symphonic guitar leads and also partly because of the nihilistic atmosphere also some Black Metal marks here and there in it, too, yes, and this all done on or from a very, very unique and characteristic stand-alone position with a gigantic and forceful own identity to it all. At a very loose description I would say that if you imagine a very high skilled and 'amazingly' fresh and self-contained and stand-alone mixture out of the glorious old WOLFPACK masterpieces (like "A NEW DAWN FADES", "LYCANTHRO PUNK", and "ALLDAY HELL"), THE EXPLOTED (especially "THE MASSACRE", "BEAT THE BASTARDS", and "FUCK THE SYSTEM"), and DISCHARGE on the one side, yes, and Sverige Death Metal somewhere between AT THE GATES, ENTOMBED, DISMEMBER, and UNLEASHED on the other side, yes, then you do have a pretty good starting description of what to expect of/from WOLFBRIGADE in general and of/from "RUN WITH THE HUNTED" in particular, yes, and fans of the GENOCIDE SUPERSTARS, SKITSYSTEM, and DISFEAR will find here in and with WOLFBRIGADE's "RUN WITH THE HUNTED" surely their new holy grail as well. But with facing that namedropping here and now please keep in mind that WOLFBRIGADE absolutely do their very, very own thing, point and fact. All is done by surely high skilled musicians that/who deliver it all via outstanding songwriting: Forceful, intense, massive, brutal, harsh, stunning, and yet very melodical and also hymnal arranged and 'impressively' playful and soulful, yes, and also beneath the 'surface' of this high-intensity raging massacre it's all very diverse and enriched with fresh ideas and clever subtle enrichments and exciting twists'n'turns all along the ride that grant us 'ongoingly' grapping moments without end that really shine bright and are nothing else but absolutely overwhelming. The same it to say about the all the time incredible sheer exciting and grapping highest intensity and the very intense, tight, and breathtaking atmosphere of all the songs and the whole album. Carried out is this all via razorsharp cutting and sledgehammer-like banging guitars that deliver powerful raging riffing and crushing rhythm work as well as (and especially) stunningly intense and breathtaking atmospheric melody lines and leads'n'solos, yes, and that are marking the songs strongly and heavily and this also for sure for all the right reasons; the pretty much same is to say about the great and very charismatic vokillz that are brutal done 'throaty' shouts that still deliver melodies and anthemic/hymnal lines (verses and Refrains a-like) and that totally (over)shine bright, too. The fast raging and harsh thundering rhythm section then finally tears down every resistance and smashes through everything and everyone, yes, and that's a total wrecking ball going highest skilled to work. The pace of the songs is mostly up-tempo to fast pace but take the time and listen intense and you will find so much exciting and impressive surprises, yes, that will absoultely leave you breathless in all positive ways. My personal favorites? Forget it. The whole damn album is my personal total favorite, period. Strong and thought-provoking lyrics, a great artwork, and a powerful blasting production sound round it all finally up, yes, turning this absolutely into the real deal and the complete package. I know I did this time no real 'ranked list' of 'my top albums of/for 2017' but if I would have done one then WOLFBRIGADE's "RUN WITH THE HUNTED" would be clearly in my top three of/for 2017, yes, and this without a single doubt. I love this band and album. Okay, I think I've said so much all what I had to say so far about WOLFBRIGADE's "RUN WITH THE HUNTED", yes, and everyone into Crustcore, D-Beat, really hard Punk and Hardcore (Punk) musick, and (Sverige) Death Metal (that's slightly blackened) simply definitely and desperately needs to have this absolutely mindblowing and breathtaking surely larger-than-life masterpiece and this (in case you really should not have or even know it) best 'yesterday than today', if you get what I mean. Anyhow, my last words: Get it!!!

(10 of 10 points)

https://wolfbrigadeofficial.wordpress.com/ (-the link to the sort of homepage of the band)

WOLFBRIGADE - "KALLOCAIN" (2017, "RUN WITH THE HUNTED")