Description
Gruff, tough, and rougher than a rhinos nads, Step to Freedom weld the brute-force belligerence of Bolt Throwers In Battle There Is No Law! to the oppressive darkness of Antisects Out From The Void. The Nizhny Novgorod, Russia, bands new self-titled album follows on from a trio of releases packed with fierce metallic crust, with 2019s The Rotten Era being the best of that bunch. Step to Freedoms latest album follows a similar keep it dark, keep it mean trajectory. The heavy gauge crust within crushes all challengers, and the albums ber-stench cover art mirrors the axe-wielding uproar perfectly.
Obviously, its a tense time for Russian punk bands and their fans. Dissent is fraught with risk, and things look dystopia-level bleak. However, at the very least, Step to Freedoms latest album has allowed the band to purge some psychological pressure via a stack of raucous tracks. Ultimately, exorcising significant stresses is one of heavy musics key directives, right? Emotional liberation via audio eruptions something like that.
As usual, Step to Freedom inject traces of chugging old school thrash into their rage-driven stenchcore. (If you want a few how stench? reference points, see the punishing salvos of Swordwielder, Fatum, Warkrusher, or Sanctum.) There are definite hooks here, too. But Step to Freedom drag those same melodies through the sewers, adding a welcomingly thick layer of crud.
Maximum filth and aggression spearheaded Step to Freedoms previous releases, and their new album leads with the same intimidating intensity. Ferocious anger powers Chasms of Soul, Control Therapy, and Pseudo Reality, while the scorching Bad Karma sits alongside gloomier and doomier dirges like Deadly Fortress and New Life Format. Primal songs arise from the ashes of catastrophic ruin as guttural vocals and gravelled riffs careen into churning bass and drums. The breadth and depth of the monstrous epic Revengeance Altar underscores a crucial point; namely, that Step to Freedoms creative strengths have never sounded stronger.
Step to Freedom serve up a grim feast with squalor and decay sitting at the heart of the meal. Their new albums wretched atmosphere reflects a world where conflict endures as disparities increase, and the most vulnerable among us are invariably left to suffer. Step to Freedom speak of an ugly reality where misanthropy metastasizes in many of us. But heres the good news; the band are here to drain the pus. Were all infected with myriad ills and awash in psychic pain, but heres your medicine. Take a double dose thrice daily your torments will soon be trampled into dust.
- Label: Blown Out Media
- Format Type: 12″
- Year: 2024
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