Steel Machine-Purifying Fire

Self-Release/Independent
2018

Lead by vocalist/guitarist Timo Takala (Septure), Finland's Steel Machine previously appeared on this site back in mid-March of 2017 (link). Here it is nearly one year later and this (Motörhead, Tank, and Carnivore influenced!) hard rock/heavy metal/speed metal band is back on the attack and meaner than ever before! Having just loved their 2016 debut EP, "Burning Valves", I jumped at the chance to download this 5-track release. Within the first few moments of opener "Spearhead" I knew that this EP was going to be something really special. By the time the riff-rocking title track closed things out, "Purifying Fire" not only proved my earlier suspicions, but completely blew the hell out of my heavy metal-loving heart!! Whether it is "To the Top" (live Motörhead meets early Tank?) or the almost-Metallica like "Beggars and Liars"*, Steel Machine's second EP is just too damn good to pass up! Released on March 2nd (making it blazing hot to the touch!), "Purifying Fire" is a must have for anyone that loves (raw & real) heavy metal/speed metal, Motörhead, and/or the Belgium band Killer!! With bassist Sebastian Bergman (Chevalier, Decaying, Sodotory) and drummer Juha Forsström (Brainspoon) rounding out the line-up, 2018 should be the year in which some record label realizes just how fucking epic this metal trio is. Until that inevitable moment happens, keep on rocking and rolling Steel Machine.


*As in pre-Black album Metallica.

Steel Machine-Burning Valves

Self-Release/Independent
2016

Formed in 2006 and currently lurking about in the Jyväskylä/Helsinki area, Steel Machine is a f**king sweet ass name for this heavy/speed metal band. The three-piece group, which is lead by guitarist/vocalist Timo Takala (Septure) and sports influences like Motörhead, Tank, and Carnivore, has seven releases to it's name. Six of them are demos and "Burning Valves" is the band's first EP. Available to download by heading here, Steel Machine's latest studio output reminds me of the Belgium band Killer. In no way, shape, of form is that a bad thing, "Burning Valves" is also the product of the three listed bands from above (Motörhead, Tank, and Carnivore) and the eighties metal scene & sound. If anything, Timo Takala and his cohorts in crime (bassist Sebastian Bergman and drummer Juha Forsström ) cram all of those sources of inspiration into one hell of a speed metal band that is as hard as it is heavy! With this release serving as my first introduction to Steel Machine, Finland has yet again won me over with it's epic metal scene!!