Where Only The Truth Is Spoken

“Everybody’s always looking for a handout.” So goes vocalist Alex Taylor’s first line in “Trenches”, the lead single on Malevolence’s fourth album. It’s a straight beatdown track in the tough-guy style of Hatebreed or Terror, an announcement that Sheffield’s self-proclaimed “Steel City Kings” are out for blood. From there, the UK band sink their boots into New Orleans’ sludge swamp on “If It’s All the Same to You”, a bruising track that features elements of both Crowbar and Pantera. Guitarist Josh Baines’ guitar heroics continue with a mountaintop solo on “Salt the Wound”, a song in which Malevolence deliberately merge their innate heaviness with their slower, more melodic side. Not to be outdone, “In Spite” boasts a guest shot from Lamb of God vocalist Randy Blythe.