ALBUM REVIEW: Warpstormer – Warpstormer
Doomy, crashing, thunderous and extremely enjoyable. WARPSTORMER have been making a name for themselves since crashing out of the post-pandemic era and into the UK metal underground. Lifting inspiration directly from well-known tabletop role playing games and smashing those themes together with riffs and powerhouse rhythms. Their 2022 EP Here Comes Hell earned them critical acclaim and a cult like status on the live scenes. Building on the early success, WARPSTORMER have gone from strength to strength distilling a sound likened to speed doom delivering a highly engaging ferocity that pulls everything into its orbit.
Leaning heavily on sci-fi is not just for the lyrics. As the opening track Black Herald is a wash of sonic chaos and synths that illustrates a spiralling soundscape that would feel right at home in any science fiction setting but here works masterfully to set up a healthy anticipation for what is to come. Shattering any ethereal qualities of the synth-based opener, the guitars collide with the hammer fall of the drums and WARPSTORMER launch full force into Oracle. Retaining everything that made their previous releases so exciting, there is a fresh level of urgency and determination present on this record. Richard Morgan belts the vocals out with commanding presence and even on record ensures that he is determined to be heard and that you will take notice.
This is a confident debut; they’ve been putting in the hard graft on the live shows and have clearly taken what they’ve learned and distilled all the positives into these seven tracks. There’s not a wasted moment or aspect that would appear out of place. A thrashy overtone ensures that the whole album moves at breakneck pace. However, there is still plenty of room for doom drenched riffs and moments of skull pummelling heavy rhythms that adds an extra layer of both engagement but also bonkers, off the wall entertainment. The Edge Of Time, the wonderfully titled Fester and the utterly bombastic A Liar’s Crown are all testament to just how WARPSTORMER have honed their craft and packaged it in such a way as to include all of their influence, their own unique style and still remaining completely captivating.
With so much going on, it could be easy for the music to become muddled and the album cohesion to suffer. Fortunately, that has not occurred here. The four-piece showcase not only their high-quality musicianship, squeezing the most out of each instrument to ensure it serves the song. They also have a deep understanding of the song structure and techniques to best elevate the desired outcome. They know when to dial it back and when to launch a full sonic onslaught. While this may not be immediately apparent on a first listen to a track like Beyonder. There is still plenty of subtlety and nuance underpinning the battering attack that keeps the music vibrant and engaging without it losing its way.
With only seven tracks, WARPSTORMER have delivered an exuberant and engaging debut. The riffs contain power and aggression, yet there’s a doom swagger forming the foundation. The intensity is driven by the rapacious rhythm section and with the music unrelenting the vocals match the vigour note for note. The quartet represent a unified front and have on their hands a debut of real potency. Their live shows have seen them earn a widespread fanbase and with this record poised to be let loose it will not be a surprise to see WARPSTORMER approaching stratospheric heights with the UK’s underground and beyond. An exciting record and one that will surely stand out from 2024.
Rating: 8/10
Warpstormer is set for release on November 29th via London Doom Collective.
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