Hosoi Bros-Abuse Your Allusion III

Typhoon Killer Records
2016

 Self-described as "Party Thrash" (see below), Hosoi Bros is a up-and-coming metal band from Memphis, Tennessee that just released it's full-length debut album, "Abuse Your Illusion III", back on September 23rd. This buzz-worthy group is comprised of  Apple (guitars, vox), Severin (guitars, vox), Drewbie (bass), and Jimmy James Blasingame (drums) and they have been thrashing up the scene since early 2010. Having shared the stage with everyone from Red Fang to Skeletonwitch, Hosoi Bros has slowly, but surely built up a loyal following and it is all thanks to this band's fun and catchy take on crossover metal! The 11-track "Abuse Your Allusion III" is this group's first full-length recording and it follows a pair of 2012 singles, "Wine Witch" and "Snorlokk". Geared towards both punks and metalheads, "Abuse Your Allusion III" has a slightly raw production job that recalls early releases from the likes of C.O.C., D.R.I., Murphy's Law, Gang Green, and S.O.D. Ultimately this gives the album a (wonderful) vintage vibe that all but transports you back to the good old days of tape trading and fanzines! And man oh man do I ever miss those days!! This one certainly takes me back, but given it's fair share of modern elements it never feels dated. It has a run-time of just over 36 minutes and it is available on CD, vinyl, cassette and as a digital download. With song titles like "Saint Tightus", "Thunder Train", "Topless Gnome",  "Drunk Donkey", "Unholy Hand Grenade", and "Bitches Are Nigh", the cheekily-titled "Abuse Your Allusion III" obviously does not take itself all that seriously, but it is a slamming classic all the same! This one gets a solid 9 out of 10....







"Party Thrash" = crossover metal that is as punk as it is metal. This is raw thrash meeting up with punk-tinged metal for an evening of beers and bowling while bands as diverse as the Sex Pistols and Slayer set the mood. Influenced as much by the Circle Jerks and Crumbsuckers as they are Nuclear Assault and "Kill 'Em All"-era Metallica, Hosoi Bros turns "Abuse Your Allusion III" into one of those great releases where anything is possible! While listening to just one song on this 11-track album I heard shades of Black Sabbath, Sepultura and Dr. Know!! You just cannot beat that folks.....

HexenHammer-Underground

Heaven and Hell Records
2015

Hailing from Columbia, Tennessee, HexenHammer (which is German for ''Malleus Maleficarum'') was a underground speed/thrash band that was active in one form or another from 1987 until at least 1992. "Underground", which is an appropriate enough title for this release given the cult-lie status of this band(!), was originally the title of a 4-track demo recording that this proto-black metal band (or would it be blackened thrash?) released in 1990. This recently-released CD collects that obscure (and highly sought-after by fans and collectors alike!) demo as well as another 4-track recording session that the band made in 1992. Unfortunately my promo copy does not include the two bonus tracks from that session, "Committed" and "The Cutting Edge", but I'm more than happy to report the great news of this re-mastered collection and in the process I'm also going to take a stab at explaining the important place that this archival set holds in the history of extreme heavy metal and proto-black metal. Re-mastered by Jamie King at The Basement Studios in Winston Salem, NC, "Underground" was culled from the best material possible. The album's disclaimer makes note of this and therefore I'm going to make note of it. After all, "Underground" was originally recorded on 4-track and from the sounds of things even that was a very humble experience! Taking that into account the music here is not bad at all and, frankly-speaking folks, I've certainly heard much worse. Hell, I'm heard some supposed modern-day recordings that are not as good as this! My guess is the only people who will complain about the sound of this collection are the sorts who like to find something to complain about anyway! No needs to name names as these people are EVERYWHERE these days and it's not going to get any better anytime soon I fear. But, I digress. We're hear to talk about HexenHammer and this (long thought lost) collection of raw speed/thrash. Lead by lead guitarist/vocalist Ronnie Dean ( a maniacal singer and musician who is the sole original member to appear on both sets of demo recordings on this collection) and (from the looks and sounds of it) originally appearing live under cover of hooded masks, HexanHammer's sound was a lightening streak of metallic frenzy across a blood-red sky! There's no other real way to describe it! While technically more thrash than death metal, HexanHammer nonetheless drew it's strength from the likes of Venom, Slayer, Bathory, (early) Celtic Frost, Death, (early) Voivod, and (early) Sepultura. Those would seem to be the key sources of influence although we can't rule out everyone from Motörhead to Pentagram either! The things is you have to remember when this band first formed and when these recordings first came out. "Underground" was originally released in 1990 after all. That was when the thrash scene was still in full-swing and bands like HexenHammer were starting to come into there own and experiment with elements like death and extreme metal. Tape trading was all the rage so it's no wonder that "Underground" gained the legendary status that it did! At the time I was still in high school and living in the small town of Mantua, Ohio. Even though I was neck deep in tape swapping and devouring anything and everything BRUTAL THRASH  (especially stuff that would have been as seemingly evil and mysterious as this lot was!) I sadly never heard of this band the first time around otherwise I would have hunted this demo down! It was only some years later I heard the rumors. Those rumors proved true as "Underground" fits that era well and for fans of the old (thrash/death metal) tape-trading days this limited-edition CD should bring back the same kind of great memories that I have! For youngsters though this collection should serve as an example of extreme metal's roots and why it's important to gather up these recordings before they are lost to time. While you can pick up the digital copy of "Underground" here I would not settle for anything less than the full-length CD with the bonus tracks. Additionally the CD features new artwork and a expanded booklet with never before seen photos! It's a fitting tribute to this cult band that for whatever reason never made it past the demo stage of it's career.