| Written by Alex Stojanovic TRACK LISTING Chronicles Of The Dead It Burns At Both Ends I Am Among You Drowning, Fading, Falling At The Edge Of The World Last Breath Taken Maniacal Alliance Of Thieves Death Of An Anthem Release Date: August 19, 2016 Label: Mascot Label Group Website: www.meshiaak.com www.facebook.com/meshiaak |  |
MESHIAAK IS:
Danny Camilleri - Lead vocals & guitars Dean Wells - Guitars & backing vocals Nick Walker - Bass Jon Dette - Drums
Danny Camilleri - Lead vocals & guitars Dean Wells - Guitars & backing vocals Nick Walker - Bass Jon Dette - Drums
Back in 2014, many fans were surprised when Danny Camilleri announced his departure from 4Arm, one of Australia's finest up-and-coming bands, who I had the pleasure of seeing in Toronto when they were touring with Testament in early 2013. However, it was only a few months later that Camilleri announced the formation of the new band Meshiaak along with Teramaze guitarist Dean Wells. The lineup would later be rounded out by bassist Nick Walker and drummer Jon Dette, who we all know as the touring drummer for bands like Slayer, Testament, Anthrax, Iced Earth and countless other bands. We all know that great food takes a long time to make, and that also applies to music, and the band's debut album Alliance Of Thieves has been in the oven for two years. The result is an amazing feast of metal with masterful musicianship and compositions as well as the combined influences of Slayer, Testament, Machine Head, Lamb Of God, Megadeth and Metallica all in one delightful and heavy package.
Alliance Of Thieves isn't just another typical thrash album. While there are plenty of good amount of thrashing moments on the album, groove is one of the major components as well as melody, along with the aggression. There's no instrumental intro or overture to build up anticipation as the rampaging opener "Chronicles Of The Dead" drops and explodes like a spontaneous bomb and starts things off in pure thrash fashion. It features fantastic riffs that are as catchy as they are heavy, and that continues into "It Burns At Both Ends". The Middle Eastern tinged lick that follows the intro gives off a slightly different flavour before the track explodes into an onslaught of forceful verses and lethal riffs.
The throttle is pulled back on "At The Edge Of The World", another highlight on the record. It's a slower track and one of several moments where the band really showcase their prowess in writing soulful and powerful melodies, especially in the vocal and guitar departments. "Last Breath Taken" returns to the thrash assault from the first two tracks with riffs that pummel you into submission. It feels like Slayer and Testament were slammed together with Anthrax to create one rhythmic, brutal and melodic thrasher, and the same can be said about the title track. "Death Of An Anthem" closes the record with a big Machine Head vibe coming from the low vocals, acoustic bits and soaring chorus. It contains the epic quality that is expected of an album closer.
If you're looking for a great album by a new band, stop looking because Alliance Of Thieves is an immaculate piece of work completely worthy of your purchase. The songwriting is superb, the production is thick and aggressive and the performances are near perfect. This is only the first taste of what I'm sure will be much more from Meshiaak and it's an album that I believe is going to be hard to top. Pick this album up.
Highs: "Chronicles Of The Dead", "Drowning, Fading, Falling", "At The Edge Of The World", "Last Breath Taken" and "Death Of An Anthem". One of the finest debuts of the year and in a while.
Lows: I don't see any reason why anyone wouldn't like this album.
Final Rating: 9.5/10
Alliance Of Thieves isn't just another typical thrash album. While there are plenty of good amount of thrashing moments on the album, groove is one of the major components as well as melody, along with the aggression. There's no instrumental intro or overture to build up anticipation as the rampaging opener "Chronicles Of The Dead" drops and explodes like a spontaneous bomb and starts things off in pure thrash fashion. It features fantastic riffs that are as catchy as they are heavy, and that continues into "It Burns At Both Ends". The Middle Eastern tinged lick that follows the intro gives off a slightly different flavour before the track explodes into an onslaught of forceful verses and lethal riffs.
The throttle is pulled back on "At The Edge Of The World", another highlight on the record. It's a slower track and one of several moments where the band really showcase their prowess in writing soulful and powerful melodies, especially in the vocal and guitar departments. "Last Breath Taken" returns to the thrash assault from the first two tracks with riffs that pummel you into submission. It feels like Slayer and Testament were slammed together with Anthrax to create one rhythmic, brutal and melodic thrasher, and the same can be said about the title track. "Death Of An Anthem" closes the record with a big Machine Head vibe coming from the low vocals, acoustic bits and soaring chorus. It contains the epic quality that is expected of an album closer.
If you're looking for a great album by a new band, stop looking because Alliance Of Thieves is an immaculate piece of work completely worthy of your purchase. The songwriting is superb, the production is thick and aggressive and the performances are near perfect. This is only the first taste of what I'm sure will be much more from Meshiaak and it's an album that I believe is going to be hard to top. Pick this album up.
Highs: "Chronicles Of The Dead", "Drowning, Fading, Falling", "At The Edge Of The World", "Last Breath Taken" and "Death Of An Anthem". One of the finest debuts of the year and in a while.
Lows: I don't see any reason why anyone wouldn't like this album.
Final Rating: 9.5/10
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