Tulsa Doom - "Storms Of The Netherworld"

"Storms of the Netherworld" kicks off into brutal high gear with the albums namesake track. Those of you who may remember me reviewing Tulsa Doom's last album "Barbarian Steel" and checked these guys out will be pleasantly surprised that not only has this band kept true to their melodic, blackened, death metal sound, but they also still worship the mighty warrior known as Conan The Barbarian and "Storms of the Netherworld" is chock full of epic tales about our favorite muscle bound hero. Musically this band has a talent for twisting smooth melodious riffs and stand-out lead guitar runs together, while also hammering out ridiculously heavy riffing as evidenced in the title track, "Shadows of Lemuria" and "Stormride". These are great examples of viking-death metal like compositions that are perfect to hoist a few cold beers to while headbanging and joining along in screaming the bands infectious chorus lines. Tulsa Doom are not a one trick pony though, while tapping into the Scandinavian melodeath sound they also rip and bash their instruments with thrash metal abandon and black metal fury on blazing tracks like "Skulls" with it's feverish Goatwhore-esque tempo rounded out with an Exodus influenced stomping breakdown. "Riders of Doom" sounds as if it could have been plucked out of the 1980's. With it's machine gun riffing and technical breaks, this one recalls the glory days of Demolition Hammer and early Megadeth. "Tyrantfall" greets the listener with rumbling bass and thunderous drums before immediately ripping the flesh from your face with searing riffs and chaotic tempo. The constant barrage of changes in mood throughout this track make for an unforgettable sonic rollercoaster ride of extreme metal. "Dustlands" is a great, brooding instrumental track. It's dark groove and grand lead guitar pyrotechnics provide the listener with somewhat of a mellow(at least, compared to the other barn burners on this disk) rest to lead into the assault of "The Coal Of Blue Fire", which showcases more of Tulsa Doom's hyper thrash meets black metal leanings and chanting, gang vocal choruses. "Nightwind" is a huge stand out track here for me. This tune is a bit of a departure from the bands completely brutal death metal style and has more in common with Judas Priest or Iron Maiden than say Amon Amarth or Marduk. The riffs are catchy, melodic and are dripping with classic metal goodness. Cap it off with a high scream that Tom Araya hasnt been able to belt out since 1992, and this track will have all the old school headbangers pulling their patch covered denim vests out of the closet and raising the horns to Tulsa Doom! "Subraion Xan" is another standout track here as well. This song is very "big" with a grandiose vibe that I can only describe as technical power metal meets early death metal. The riffs are very hooky while also staying dirty and raw. This would definitely be the soundtrack to a clan of warriors invading a village, burning it to the ground and raising their chalices in victory afterwards. "Final Cataclysm" closes this disk out with a huge nod to the classic melodic black metal formula and sound. Riffs buzz by at high velocity, melting together with cold, dark chords relentlessly being hammered out of the guitars while the drums blast away. If you are as bored with the current state of heavy, extreme metal as I am lately, especially from all the look-alike, sound-alike american "death metal" bands flooding the scene, look no further than this group of Austria's brutal barbarians. The riffs are plentiful, the changes in the musical passages are seemless and keep the listener interested, the bass is deep and cuts through strong, the drums are tight and pound through your skull and fans of classic Celtic Frost and Nola's own Goatwhore will absolutely devour the vocals on "Storms of the Netherworld" from Tulsa Doom. You can find these guys online at www.facebook.com/tulsadoom and you can buy physical copies of the cd along with other awesome merch at : https://tulsadoom.bandcamp.com/merch you can also send an email to : tulsadoom@gmx.at if you would like to contact them about purchasing music and merch, so go hit them up, crush your enemies, see them driven before you and add Tulsa Doom to your music library!