Ol and the guys are back with another album, with a UK wide tour booked, let’s see what Gareth knows about The Unknown…

Evile are a band that have caused huge ripples in the UK metal scene, ever since forming in 2004, and a new Evile album is always a hugely anticipated event. I won’t go into too much detail of the past history as they are such a well-known and respected UK band and one of the forerunners of the New Wave of Thrash Metal’, but for those who don’t know who Evile are, here’s a brief recap.

Formed by Ben Carter (drums) and Matt Drake (vocals and guitar), they were soon joined by Ol Drake on lead guitar, and starting as a (primarily) Metallica covers band back in 1999, under the moniker Metal Militia, the band eventually changed name and started writing original material, after a couple of self-financed releases, the ‘All Hallows’ Eve EP’ and the ‘Hell Demo’, the band were picked up by Earache and released their debut ‘Enter the Grave’ produced by Flemming, the man who early days was credited with the Metallica ‘sound’. After second release, the much improved ‘Infected Nations’, tragedy struck with the sudden passing of bassist Mike Alexander, but the band forged on resolutely, and with new bassist Joel Graham, released two very well received albums in ‘Five Serpent’s Teeth’ and ‘Skull’, before Ol decided to leave and then followed 5 years of uncertainty and inactivity, before Ol rejoined but after another year or so Matt decided to leave due to both family commitments and health issues, but retains a strong connection with his old bandmates.

In came young blood Adam Smith (ex Riptide) on rhythm guitar, and Ol took on the vocals as well as lead guitar duties and 8 years after ‘Skull’ they unleashed, umm Hell, in fifth album ‘Hell Unleashed’, arguably their heaviest and fasted album to date, to mostly great acclaim, although Ol’s harsher vocals did prove difficult for some fans to process. Now 2 years later the band is about to release album number six.

Starting with the title-track and lead single, a brave, but also clever move, as it is one of the songs which best demonstrates the ‘new’ Evile sound. Slower, haunting even, with a more melodic slant, the riffs are a little less technical, yet still very heavy, just in a different way. Two things that you notice straight away is; firstly the production values, recorded at Longwave Studios Cardiff, and produced, mixed and mastered by Chris Clancy, responsible for ‘Hell Unleashed’, the album sound is absolutely massive, the band has always sounded great, from the debut, through the three Russ Russell produced albums, but this is a step up again, and it makes you wonder why other much bigger bands, naming no names, can’t sound this good? Secondly, Ol Drake has worked extremely hard on his vocals and are much more akin to the early Matt fronted albums, with a strong, clear melodic performance.

‘The Mask We Wear’’ is another slower number, but adds a bit more groove into the mix, while ‘Monolith’ is almost doom metal like in its tempo, with concrete heavy riffs and chord progressions. Track four is the big ballad, but to be honest it’s not really new ground for the band, as they’re not unfamiliar with a power ballad, see the touching tribute to Mike Alexander ‘In Memoriam’ from ‘Five Serpent’s Teeth’ and ‘Tomb’ from ‘Skull’, both saw the band dabble with acoustic guitars and their more emotional side, and ‘When Mortal Coils Shed’, continues this with an assured confidence.

For those of you missing the speed of the old Evile, ‘Sleepless Eyes’ is like a shot of adrenaline, and ups the tempo, with blistering riffs and double bass drums, musically it’s much more akin with the ‘Hell Unleashed’ material, though vocally, it is more melodic. ‘Out of Sight’ continues the rage, another speedy track, with a cool unconventional vocal delivery, again the barrage of riffs is fast and furious, while ‘At Mirrors Speech’ combines both slower and fast elements, with a pulsing staccato groove. It’s also good to see it’s not only musically where the band are experimenting, lyrically ‘The Unknown’ sees them exploring new emotional, and profound topics, such as the anxiety of forthcoming fatherhood, living with dementia in the family, also loss and bereavement, are among the serious themes touched upon. ‘Reap What you Sow’ is substantially weighty with some pleasing, grindingly heavy riffs, and ‘Beginning of the End’ is another solid, mid-tempo number, with slower, and heavier elements, with a discordant and bludgeoning riff set. ‘Balance of Time’ sees the album close with another thrash onslaught with a healthy dose of speed and finishes off the proceedings on a more familiar note.

Sometimes being in a band must be a tricky ride, as each album passes and time moves on, sometimes things happen artistically, whether by design or they occur organically, that might have a massive impact on the band’s sound, fans reactions, and much more. I feel Evile have hit one of those points with ‘The Unknown’. This is certainly going to be a provocative and contentious release, with change comes resistance and doubt. Although to be honest I feel this is actually a logical musical step forward from fourth album ‘Skull’ where the band experimented with slower heavier tempos, and actually ‘Hell Unleased’ is the odd album out, with its brutal, almost death metal like intensity. Personally, I think ‘The Unknown’ will open new doors for the band but will definitely alienate certain elements of the fan base.

One thing I haven’t touched on and this is definitely going to crop up when the pub debates start, is a certain album with a black cover! There’s unquestionably, and not without merit, a similarity, but to be fair, the band have never shied away from their biggest influence, so it shouldn’t be a massive surprise, plus they inject enough of their own personality into the album for it not to be a clone or doppelgänger. For those who can accept a band adjusting and progressing their sound, I think they will find ‘The Unknown’ an entertaining, intriguing, and ultimately rewarding listen. Here’s to the future and the unknown it will bring.

Evile – The Unknown is out this Friday, July 14th on Napalm Records