Age Of Wolves
Pitch Black, 2021
8/10
The Canadian hard rockers Age Of Wolves don’t waste anytime making an impression on this debut album, where their retro-metal ways are fleshed out with strong attention to detail and intricate, engaging musicianship.
“Lil’ Burner” starts the album with thumping drums, spirited guitar and growling yet tuneful vocals in the throwback metal climate, and “Avernus” follows with a fuller approach that benefits from firm riffs, a lively energy and even some fluid grooves amid the hard hitting landscape.
“Temple Bar” lands in the middle and chugs densely alongside raw singing and bristling, dynamic musicianship, while “Overlord” offers a furious, thrash like presence of old school metal that we will never tire of.
At the end, the highly melodic “My Love Ends All” illustrates an impressive range from frontman Michael Edwards that gets a bit grungey, too, and “Endless Tides” exits the listen with the rhythm section of Ray Solomon and Dwayne LaFramboise working together with stunning results.
Though they only formed in 2019, the members of Ages Of Wolves have lengthy histories in music, and it shows in each charged, calculated and memorable moment of this exceptional first record.
Travels well with: Hunted- Deliver Us; Airforce- Strike Hard