The Defiled-Grave Times

Raise The Game

2011

What do we have here friends? Well, it's another one of those "free" albums you get when you pluck down your hard earned money on a music magazine (in this case Metal Hammer). Yes, you are correct when you say that I just ragged on mainstream music publications. The last music magazine I really liked (Metal Maniacs) walked off and died on me (although by the end Metal Maniacs should have died since it turned into a turd). Metal Hammer is one of the few metal magazines I will read and even then it's such a rare occasion that it's not even worth mentioning. Anyway, this isn't meant to be a plug for Metal Hammer (they don't need my help and if they do could they pay me?) but rather the free disc that came enclosed. So with that we have London based The Defiled and their debut album Grave Times. Now being that this came with a heavy metal magazine chances are there should be something "metal" about the band. At their core there is. Now to quote the band themselves "We're too goth for metal and too metal for goth". That's a good way of putting things. Now let me say I don't mind goth so I'm ok with that aspect. Metal wise though they are are more heavy than most radio metal bands though. I'd also say the band are on the heavier side of electronic rock and this album pushes things into an industrial metalcore sound . "In The Land Of Rock" starts off the disc and even though the band looks like the offspring of Marilyn Mason and Motley Crue the track plays out like metalcore on meth. "Call To Arms" reminded me God Is LSD. Now as much as goth is sprinkled in the band's look and the lyrics play out like Nine Inch Nails the band is pretty cool. If metal fans can get past the make up and teased hair (wait didn't we already put up with that for hair metal?) then The Defiled stand to get the mosh pit started. "Blood Sells" is custom built for a little slam dancing action. "Final Sleep" steered the wheel into N.I.N. yes but I'm still standing by this being a chuck of riff heavy metal even with the synths. You can check it in the January issue of Metal Hammer or pick it up from sites like Itunes. While Metal Hammer likes to call all of these bands the future of metal I just like to think of them as an interesting up and coming band worth keeping an eye on.