ALBUM REVIEW: TankZilla – TankZilla
TANKZILLA is a two headed beast made up of Peter van Elderen (guitar and vocals) and Marcin Hurkmans (drums), and they have come storming out of Eindhoven, Netherlands with an infectious stoner swamp sound. From starting up five years ago as jam room buddies, to playing at the world renowned Roadburn Festival and now releasing their self-titled debut album, it has been an asphalt scorching thrill ride for the Dutch duo. TankZilla is a fuzz worshipping machine of rock and roll. Allegedly the band are the product of a frisky encounter between Satan and a Panzer tank, so you better strap yourself in for one boogie-laden, octave pedal-driven thrill ride from start to finish.
With both van Elderen and Hurkmans’ former bands falling apart for various reasons, TankZilla feels like a rekindling of the pair’s passion for music. To say this album is supercharged is an understatement. There is a significant amount of vibrant energy coursing through this record like an ultra high frequency electrical current. You can imagine the cranked amps are glowing like the valve that adorns the album’s cover, as TANKZILLA have turned this record up to eleven. With that in mind, this album pulls no punches; the riffs come swinging out of your headphones like no tomorrow. From the very first notes of the manic opener Lucifer, you’re swept up in the melee of grooves, fuzz and drums. It would be a significant challenge for anyone not to move any part of their body whilst listening to TankZilla, it’s infectious right through to its conclusion.
One thing that strikes you about TankZilla is how incredibly tight and cohesive van Elderen and Hurkmans’ performances are. The duo are so locked into the grooves, riffs and rhythms that the album exudes confidence and swagger. You could easily be tricked into thinking that there are more than two members of this band with the amount of noise they make. Despite the lack of bassist the ever present octave pedal that beefs up van Elderen’s riffs does an incredible job of creating a wall of sound alongside the thunderous drums. There is also a wonderfully gritty yet funky bluesy element to TANKZILLA‘s sound that is reminiscent of bands such as BLACK STONE CHERRY and CLUTCH. That emphasis on blue notes, distinctive vocals and big chordal riffs is a winning combination that will surely make the band appeal to many. Alongside this is a brilliantly old school MOTÖRHEAD style approach to playing ferociously fast with plenty of groove. The album does seem to embody Lemmy’s seminal philosophy of rock n’ roll played with a punk sensibility.
The aforementioned Lucifer opens the album with considerable gusto, a short, sharp track that is full to the brim with attitude and fuzz. It leads into the funky, bluesy Crossroad, which is where TANKZILLA really kick into their stride and the years of honing their sound comes to the fore. It’s at this point that the valves are already working over time and you are drenched in lusciously warm fuzz. Wrong Place picks up the pace and follows a similar formula, led by a crushing riff while Hurkmans’ incredibly tight chops drive the song forward. Soulsurfer has an incredibly southern metal feel to it; the ascending and descending riffs are anchored by a solid kick drum that makes the whole song feel like it’s spinning around in your skull. Down Below is a chaotic tumult of riffs, with the band’s penchant for infectious grooves coming to the fore in blisteringly quick fashion.
Brother From Another Mother is the strangest song on the album, with a stripped back instrumentation in the beginning before erupting into a solid stoner groove, the crazy lyrics sound like van Elderen has been taking lessons in lyrical ambiguity from Neil Fallon. Wolfpack and Pluck The Rooster are more straightforward stoner jams, with big riffs, plenty of drum fills and catchy vocal melodies that become lingering ear worms. Mutant Freak is probably the slowest and heaviest song on the album as it has this darker vibe and foreboding energy that the other tracks don’t have. Diggin’ 4 Gold is a surprisingly soulful and bluesy track that reminds you of those action packed summer days at festivals with plenty of kicked up dust and camping chaos. Album closer Hard Way is TANKZILLA’s best, an absolutely beauty of an anthem to round off an emphatic debut.
Ultimately, this is an album to just lose all your inhibitions to and unleash hell with whatever poison you choose. It is abundantly clear that van Elderen and Hurkmans have piled everything they’ve got into this album. The blood, sweat and tears of the last five years have come to fruition in the form of an unbridled and chaotically fun debut that you really don’t want to miss out on.
Rating: 8/10
TankZilla is set for release on May 19th via Heavy Psych Sounds.
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