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DevilDriver - Beast

Technical brutality and pure fucking class

Rating: 8

Whenever the name DevilDriver crops up in conversation, the inevitable catalyst for discussion will be memories of a borderline psychopath with face tattoos working his audience with terrifying clarity, enticing endless circle-pits out of those who simply want to bang their heads. Less likely is that talk will turn to tales of virtuoso musicianship, of utterly absorbing, coruscating cavalcades of heavy metal thunder, but now five albums into a career which has garnered the band much respect, if not full-on admiration, Dez Fafara and co are redressing the balance. So, whilst previous records may have been deliriously heavy, for the most part they lacked the hallmarks of a truly exceptional band. ‘Beast’, we are delighted to reveal, has these in spades. Take the astonishingly fluid, gloriously harmonious twin-guitar duels that unfurl towards the conclusion of ‘Bring The Fight (To The Floor)’ or ‘Hardened’ for starters, or perhaps the lurching squalls of woozy disorientation powering ‘Talons Out (Teeth Sharpened)’. Moreover, it speaks volumes that the Trivium-esque stomp found on ‘Shitlist’ or ‘The Blame Game’ is as characteristic of the album as the blackened, buzz saw guitars running viciously through ‘Dead To Rights’ or ‘Coldblooded’. Ruthlessly combining technical brutality and pure fucking class, DevilDriver have finally come of age.

Pete Withers