Stälker-Shadow of the Sword

Napalm Records
2017

Stälker is a (raw) speed metal band from New Zealand that is lead by bassist/vocalist Daif king (Blood Knight) and features two former members of Razorwyre within it's ranks: guitarist Chris Calavrias and drummer Nick Oates (Numbskull). The 10-track "Shadow of the Sword" serves as Stälker's full-length debut. It was released back in November of 2017 and has a run-time of over 38 minutes. In addition to nine original compositions (most of which completely shred!), "Shadow of the Sword" includes a sick cover of Death's "Evil Dead". Primarily influenced by the eighties speed metal scene (think early Slayer crossed with early Exciter!), this New Zealand trio is not for the fate of heart or anyone who might be looking for clean, crisp, and crystal-clear metal. Instead this is rough & raw speed metal that leaves no prisoners and offers no apologies for the damage that it has done! In a very cool way, Stälker brought back fond memories of the underground speed/thrash scene of the late eighties as well as the tape-trading days of old. For those of you who might not be old enough to remember such things, fear not! This album might be geared towards fans of retro speed metal, but it has more than enough muscle to wreck the competition!!