Bestias De Asalto - Homenaje A La Violencia

Formerly known as Maldito, and hailing from the Oaxaca region of Mexico, BdA are one of the brighter beacons to come from the area - perhaps a shame that all Mexican EBM is automatically voided by this joke of a 'community' - Mexican bands are all but ignored now, as by default, certain idiots have decided that that must mean they are ripping off Hocico. Bull-fucking-shit - Have you even listened? By your logic, any band making Metal is ripping off Black Sabbath. Any band making Ambient is ripping off Brian Eno.

Stop downloading every new release illegally, saying it's shit, and talking about crap you know nothing about, as this is one of the finest albums of the year (by proxy, you're one of the finest wastes of time of the year) - and here's why.*

"Matalos a Todos" Kicks off with a vicious vocal - It's aggressive Punk meets Harsh EBM, and starts off with a powerful synth that, I admit, does have elements of classic Hocico to it. This is where the comparison ends, however.

Much more similar to God Destruction, BdA are exceptionally fast paced, punishing, and above all else, evil. For me, they're the first Mexican act to really sound like their heritage - it's got an Aztec vibe to it, coupled with Guerrilla imagery, and a pulsating synth sound.

"Secuestro" has an intro that gets the juices flowing, complete with Machine Gun fire as a backdrop. It builds into the catchiest melody on the disc, and if we're doing the whole Metal/ Industrial comparison again, this is the 'Reign in Blood' of the genre - it's blisteringly fast, relentless, and unforgiving, and if I so happened to be driving during this release, I'd be in the back of a Truck by now - no doubt the CD would keep playing, such is the need to be heard.

Tracks such as "Arsenal" further the theme of all-out warfare, and the injection of a tiny element of Punk is enough to give this album something fresh and new.

With Bestias De Asalto and God Destruction, the scene has released two of its finest albums in a long time - both on fledging label 'Engraved Ritual' - a name that is already becoming household to serious Rivetheads.

If this doesn't coerce you to open your wallets, Sin DNA and X-Fusion appear as remixers, as well as Larva, and label mates 'Angels of Suicide'.

For everyone who dismissed this - go ahead and remain in 2001. Here in 2012, the Mayans are watching - they've given us a month 'til apocalypse - NOTHING is going to sound like Armageddon better than this.

* The above comment addresses only those who spend their time pirating and berating everything 'Industrial' and calling themselves 'fans'. Nov 21 2012