HELLRIPPER - Complete And Total Fucking Mayhem (Black Vinyl)
Limited to 500 Black Vinyl – with Lyric Insert – comes with new Artwork.
Scottish musician James McBain is a busy, busy man. Dabbling in everything from crusty black metal in Rats of Reality, to old school death metal of Lord Rot, to the gothic/post-punk of Lock Howl, McBain’s most vicious and biting project is, arguably, Hellripper, a blackened speed metal assault. After a handful of splits and an EP, Hellripper was picked up by the notorious underground label Barbarian Wrath, who is planning to release an upcoming full length. In the meantime, Hellripper put together a compilation of all previously released tracks, Complete and Total Fucking Mayhem.
Since the rest of the releases have been limited, this is a good place to get all of the band’s tracks in one spot. Everything, from the debut EP to the split with Batsheva, the Prophecies of Ruin split with Fetid Zombie, and the three way split with Acid Cross and Kriegg, is here. Despite coming from four different sources, the compilation plays through like a cohesive unit, rather than a mishmashed hodgepodge of leftovers.
To the uninitiated, Hellripper plays ultra-riffy black/speed metal in the vein of Speedwolf or Toxic Holocaust. McBain’s snarling shouts and growls offer a fine vehicle for the blasphemously catchy lyrics. From the opening notes of “Flesh Ripper” through the closing lead lick during “Nocturnal Terror”, Complete and Total Fucking Mayhem absolutely lives up to its name. Thrashing riffs and speed metal-tinged licks and leads are reinforced with rampant double kicks and crusty d-beat tinged percussion, but Hellripper’s sound relies heavily on those fantastically executed riffs. It’s perfect music for roaring down the highway or creeping through the back alleys at midnight.
Really, Complete and Total Fucking Mayhem is a release for those who weren’t able to scoop up all of the splits or those who would just like the convenience of having everything in one place. Ripping, riffing, thrashing, blackened speed metal from one of the best in the business; this one serves as a nice layover until the upcoming full length sees the light of day