Howl is one of the newer singings on Relapse Records and this is their first EP released on this album. Howl is a Rhode Island based band out of the US and this is basically a re-release of their self released EP. I understand why Relapse signed this band, because musically it fits their stable pretty good. Hints of Mastodon in their Remission era, a pinch of Kylesa and a dozen of boring, weak sludgy metalcore riffs.
 

There are some decent ideas in this band and I’m 100% sure, that this band is absolutely skull crushing brutal live on stage, but on this EP it all sounds a bit too much as a band that still is searching for its own identity. Production is good, so the mid-tempo headbang riffs will roll out of your speakers. That isn’t the problem though; it’s the lack of original riffs, which makes this EP a bit boring.
 

Best song on this EP is ‘And The Gnawing…’, which sounds like High On Fire is playing together with Prong. Fun fact; their guitar/vocalist is Vincent from the Dutch Straight Edge band Driven. So there’s some Dutch pride in this unit!