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LEBARON
LeBaron

Ancient Temple Recordings (2024)
Rating: 7/10

Boiling like a volatile cauldron of Swedish HM-2, crossover thrash and punk crust, Canadian act LeBaron unleashes its debut full-length opus. This raucous and rowdy offering spits, foams and salivates with rabid aplomb, more so through vocalist Mitchie Dagger whose hardcore rants and death n’ roll gasps give extra layers of savagery.

Slot these guys on the bill in support of latter day Entombed and you’ve got quite the pairing as ‘The Wicked’ begins with a doomy fuzz before the quartet channels Motörhead for some seriously alcoholic death punk. Alexandre Tremblay’s drums are a joy to behold as they gallop through the squalid fluff and silt of Franz Mecking’s scuzzy bass.

‘Intimidator’ merges a thick Hellhammer evil with a blackened, billowing thrash lined with black metal grit circa latter day Darkthrone, the end result of the whole output however being a cistern of choking soot that coughs out rancid fumes of beer and bile.

Nine blasphemous cuts exist under an acidic bleak sky that drips with gravel as ‘Demon’ thrashes like some mid-80s basement demo, driven forever into eternal darkness by the rusty axe work of Adam Parsons. His strings come fully coated in a Discharge discharge, rank and toxic as ‘Salem’ and ‘Maniac’ gallop like hellhounds through fog-choked moors, the commands which beckon their services being forceful grunts.

‘Sacrifice’ is once again evidence of the unhygienic marrying of Norway, Sweden and Switzerland as the drums rattle like loosened nuts and bolts on Satan’s phantom carriage. ‘Edge Of The Knife’ is more timely in its devilish grind but once again clogged with black ash and grey smoke as elements of doom metal, yet squalid hardcore ooze from the cracks.

LeBaron successfully merges familiar designs of filth with this debut, often pulverising with their direct brand of clouded, smoggy metal. This is lethal stuff, so prepare to have your eardrums powdered and pummelled.

Neil Arnold

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