The 30 Greatest BRITISH Metal Albums of 2022
British, British, British, British, British.....
Lawnmower Deth – Blunt Cutters
Genre: Thrash
Released: January 28th, 2022 via Dissonance Productions
Crank up them mowers, it’s UK thrash time…..and we have legends in our midst. Lawnmower Deth may have been quiet on the recorded output front (fans have waited 29 years for this new release) but in 2022 they were back baby, and they’re here to stay!
While “Raise Your Snails” is pure Lawnmower Deth lunacy at its finest, “Into The Pit” (not a cover of the Testament track, Lawnmower Deth don’t need to cover those losers) is a back-snapping ode to the joys of moshing (even at our frankly inappropriate age) as we’re instructed to enter the “Deth pit, lose your shit. Slip your disc, pain kill death”. Better do as the Deth say, as these guys mean business. That’s right thrashers, despite their deserved reputation for being one of the funniest bands on the planet, Lawnmower Deth can still deliver the ‘heavy’ when they want to, meaning Blunt Cutters is so much more than just a mere novelty record.
A sublime piece of crossover tomfoolery, the long awaited return of Lawnmower Deth in album form was already the best thing of 2022…. and it was only January!
Live Burial – Curse Of The Forlorn
Genre: Death Metal
Released: September 23rd, 2022 via Transending Obscurity Records
Death-worshipping is fine by us (Gruesome are building an entire career around it for fucks sake) and Live Burial‘s ‘take’ on the latter-day output of Chuck Schuldiner and co. reaps numerous rewards for those who like their death metal to be old-school and technical, atmospheric and hideously heavy.
Often overwhelmingly dense, Live Burial‘s whirlwind of sound threatened to disarm rather than cajole the listener but moments of semi-tempered brevity – particularly on the last few minutes of “Exhumation and Execution” – offered respite from the cold, harsh extremity that surrounded it.
Closing with the expansive “This Prison I Call Flesh” may have tested patience further but we maintain that this exquisitely played, and epic final song, indicated that Live Burial are still evolving and are fast becoming one of the UK’s most important and interesting death metal bands.
MWWB – The Harvest
Genre: Doom / Psychedelia
Released: March 25th, 2022 via New Heavy Sounds
Interstellar Welsh doom wizards MWWB (or Mammoth Weed Wizard Bastard as they were formerly known) returned to earthly plains with their fourth album, The Harvest in tow. Featuring expected sloth-like lumbering doom riffs, swirling synths, Jessica Ball’s ethereal vocals and layer-adding intergalactic noise, the difference – this time around – is that their sound had crystallised into something even more celestial and other-worldly than previously encountered!
Far more progressive and experimental than on prior trips around the cosmos, MWWB had now fully embraced a more cinematic approach with moments of synth-heavy ambience on “Interstellar Wrecking” sounding like something from the Flash Gordon sequel that never arrived. That reference may be a little trite however, as there was absolutely nothing cheesy or kitsch about The Harvest. MWWB still crushed all in their path with the weightiest doom riffs fathomable – check out the Sabbath-ian heft of “Logic Bomb” – but there was a more psychedelic presence evident; leading to a more well-rounded and ‘heavenly’ experience.
A (semi-disguised) doom album that was as densely heavy as the deepest, darkest, black hole.
Opensight – Mondo Fiction
Genre: Cinematic Metal
Released: Independently on February 4th, 2022
Opensight’s quirky brand of cinematic metal is designed for true cinephiles to enjoy. With nods to Bond, 50s and 60s horror/sci-fi and cult Italian Giallo and Poliziotteschi movies, their fresh take on classic themes, their twists on obscurities and the sheer effort they put into the whole enterprise (check out their videos which are cinematic treats in themselves) has always been a joy to behold….and Opensight‘s latest album, Mondo Fiction, was certainly no exception!
Embracing all manner of cult cinematic hits, Mondo Fiction really is an album to devour with its accompanying videos in tow – as the fun lies in spotting just how many obscure filmic treats have been absorbed into the narrative.
Don’t quote us on this but we’re sure we spotted personal favourites The Brain That Wouldn’t Die [1962] (“Stained Remains”) and What Have They Done To Your Daughters? [1974] (“In Here With Us”) and Opensight’s influences didn’t just stop there. With nods to surf-rock on the likes of “Plot Twist” and a nice bit of 70’s funk on “The Chase”, the cool factor was often off the scale as the band went about contorting time-honoured sounds to suit their own warped agenda.
Party Cannon – Volumes Of Vomit
Genre: Slam / Brutal Death Metal
Released: January 14th, 2022 via Gore House Productions
If you’re not overly familiar with Party Cannon‘s past work, you’ll at least have seen their jaunty, colourful, Toys ‘R’ Us style logo jumping out at you among the piles-of-twigs-band-logos on many a death metal festival flyer. Highly amusing and indicative of a band who don’t take their particular brand of music too seriously….or do they?
Featuring an endless parade of unrelenting guitar chugging, vocals that range from screeching to snorting/snuffling and drumming that makes you wonder if Count Blastula (how can you not love that name?) has any limbs left, Volumes Of Vomit was carnage from start to finish as Party Cannon commanded you chug a gallon of beer, stomp on the nearest head and slam your way into mindless oblivion.
As an added bonus, Volumes Of Vomit offers the opportunity to play ‘Guess The Soundbite’, as Party Cannon have bookended pretty much every track with an amusing or famous skit from the wild and wacky world we live in. Guest appearances from Don Campan (Waking The Cadaver), Ross Sewage (Exhumed) and Andrew LoMastro (Cerebral Incubation) also lend weight to the fact that, despite their silliness, Party Cannon have become a force to be reckoned with among their peers.
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