A slow humming sound hits the speakers, followed by rampant snare abuse and somewhat stonerish guitar-effected riffs. The bio reads "file under Metal Doomcore (or Rock, if you please)" and my memory reads "Raging Speedhorn, isn't that one of those billion metalcore acts from the UK?". But blasting the opening track A Different Shade Of Shit through the speakers of the Napalm Mansion, at least my prejudicial memory concerning these British psychos has been shattered to pieces.

Four minutes into How The Great Have Fallen and I've heard Pantera, Black Label Society, Down and yes, some fatty hardcore influences. Wait a minute, doesn't the British rock scene suck ass except for Napalm Death, Gorerotted and.. ehm well thats it isn't it? How did this happen? Where did it go right? This stuff rules!

Produced by Queens Of The Stone Age associate Joe Baresi, this third Raging Speedhorn effort is a refreshing expierence that has more influences than you've got pubic hairs. Double-vocals (low brutal grunts, "son, you'll fuck up your voice for ever if you keep doing that"- type screams that sound like Phil Anselmo fresh out of dope, awesome)... Metal riffs (big FAT metalriffs), stoner riffs, punk & hardcore rhythms, keyboard soundscapes, slow and heavy-as-fuck doom passages.... and just about anything they could cram in here. Fantastic! It reminds me of that other metalcore act that was so great in combining an insane combination of genres, Five Pointe O.

Epic stuff like A Different Shade Of Shit, Oh How The Great Have Fallen, Slay The Coward (DOOOM METAL!!) and Dead Man Walking, it's among the more exiting stuff I've heard this year. And although it never gets to a point that they "redefine the face of metal" (as the bio concludes), it sure is a big bitch slap with an army boot. It's just so fucking heavy, it's so fucking cool... Raging Speedhorn should have a definite international breakthrough NOW! It's just rediculous that they can not be found on any big european festival, why not?! Killswitch Engage, Chimaira and so on, they all get their chance.. What's going on here? Insufficiant PR is my bet. These guys should be heard by the world. They bring more fun and exitement than any of the big trendies (New Wave Of American Pussies and Metalwhore) that rule the so called "talent" slots on the festivals.

How The Great Have Fallen is a very exiting record with all the tempo changes, all the best of different shades of metal, a great productional sound, and a promising record that can be comprimised in one word: LOUD! And boy it is! And you want to know one of the best things about this band? NO CLEAN VOCALS WHAT SO EVER! Ha!

This is a metalrage.com MUST HEAR! Fantastic! This album is due to be released on May 23rd through Steamhammer/SPV

Band line-up:

Vocals : Frank Regan
Vocals : John Loughlin
Guitar : Gaz Smith
Guitar : Jaye Thompson
Bass : Darren Smith
Drums : Gordon Morsion

CD Track list:

1. A Different Shade Of Shit
2. Oh How The Great Have Fallen
3. Dead Man Walking
4. Master Of Disaster
5. Snatching Defeat From The Jaws Of Victory
6. How Much Can A Man Take
7. Fuck You Pay Me
8. Slay The Coward
9. The Infidel Is Dead
10. Don't Let The Bastards Grind You Down