Jesusmartyr - The Black Waters

With over a decade of experience, Argentina’s Jesusmartyr has gained lots of attention for themselves in Latin America. They’ve toured Brazil as well as Europe three times already, played for international television and recorded three albums. Their third, The Black Waters, was only recently released through Holland’s Rusty Cage Records. And with this album comes a very brutal sound from producer Peter Siegfredsen (Mnemic, Illdisposed, Mercenary and Hatesphere).

As if Max Cavalera sings in Mnemic. That’s how I would describe Jesusmartyr. It's very obvious that there are some Latin influences in this music, like we all know from bands in the vein of Sepultura and Soulfly. The influences are less abundant in this music, though. I consider this a bit of a pity, ‘cause I think it would have given this band more a sound of its own.

Then again, the brutal modern metal sound of these Argentinean dudes is very heavy. Much alike modern European metal bands like Mnemic. So, one could say the scene already knows a lot of these kind of bands. Still, I think Jesusmartyr would do very well on European soil. They’ve created a very grooving, brutal album that’s certainly worth a spot in your CD collection.

Overall I’d say this album could use a bit more variation. Maybe some more Latin influences next time?! On the other hand, I think this band could go places in the modern day world of metal. Strong and fast riffs make for a heavy trip. Though not all too original, I’d like to introduce the song ‘Moonvalley’ to you to find out whether or not this is your band. And let’s face it, with just over thirty minutes of metal, one won’t get bored too quickly. Jep, I think Jesusmartyr will blast out of my speakers every now and then in the future.