EP REVIEW: Good For Glue (And Nothing Else) – A Horse Called War

Born in East Anglia in 2005 the IRON MONKEY influenced A HORSE CALLED WAR passed away in 2010 but was resurrected in 2015 and now four years later the quartet offer their first release since 2007 in the form of the nihilistically named Good For Glue (And Nothing Else). Released through APF records which has snapped up a great number of UK bands over the last few months to boast an impressive roster of stoner and doom metal.

Opening with fast as fuck earnest drum rolls and angry barking vocals which (excuse the pun) indicates the Dog is very much not dead is first track Dog Is Dead. Contrasting the pissed off energy is a filthy but delicious groove and offsetting the feral barking is a kind of anguished almost nasal yowling which is strangely most comparable to the vocals of Chino Moreno of DEFTONES in the early days. That’s what this album seems to do is mix old school influences of metal, hardcore and sludge to have what feels like an almost timeless sound especially while holding strong comparisons to EYEHATEGOD and RAGING SPEEDHORN.

Old One Eye starts off with thick sludgy riffs before short sharp crusty yelps kick in contrasted against slow pummelling drums and drawn out subdued howls. The pace picks up to add a more, punky vibe which would undoubtedly incite a decent moshpit to get going and it follows a steady EHG ebb and flow of sludge and punk to the end. The groove returns in Pardon The Pun but there is more of a hardcore element in the mix with some stoner riffs thrown in. It is quite repetitive and has an almost anthemic quality with sing along lyrics and group chanting.

Where Don Frye might be relatable to crawling through a rancid quagmire the following Woodpusher could be more apt to being dragged through said quagmire, by the hair. The most unforgivingly punishing and cathartic track on the EP there is a strong CONVERGE feel here with the distorted and discordant guitars and the crushing drums are complex with plenty of rolls and fills.  

Overall A HORSE CALLED WAR are still as in your face as previous offerings such as Stumble At Every Hurdle but with a more experimental and refined edge there are more dynamics in the battling vocals and perhaps unsurprisingly a lot more bitter rage. As mentioned before there is not a lot of originality here and a bit of repetition as well but this will still be a pleaser for the pissed off nihilistic hardcore sludge fans out there.

Rating: 7/10

Good For Glue (And Nothing Else) is out now via APF Records.

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