Out For Bludvera

Over in the rainy country of the UK, there is a band that is getting a lot of buzz. So much so that they are on this year’s unsigned bands stage at Bloodstock Open Air. Bludvera is the band responsible for all this carnage overseas opening for such acts as Death Angel, Evile, Bonded By Blood and many others as they spread their violent form of thrash across the earth. Their self-titled demo available for free download is nothing short of terrifying.

The four tracks follow the basic pattern of thrash with intricate riffing and basic drumming. The demo is well produced and sounds crisp. The only problem is that it may be a little generic sounding at times due to the standard format they follow.

Until Scott Clayton’s vocals kick in.

The long-haired lad sounds like a young Mille Petrozza (Kreator) ready for attack. He has a wild and unpredictable voice which pulls the band out of the “standard thrash” category.

All of the songs are interesting and pay homage to thrash greats like Kreator, Exodus and Testament – the first song “Tools of Bloodshed’s” intro reminiscent of the latter bands classic “Burt Offerings.”

Another great song featured is “Total Recall,” which does a great job lyrically describing Arnold Schwarzenegger’s box office flick. They even use the line “Get your ass to mars” as a chorus.

“Submerged by Death” is another really cool song with some killer riffs that closes out the demo quite nicely. A cool solo section with some Exodus-like trade offs and dive bombs really help this one stand out.

The only track that might not tickle your fancy is the demo’s second track “Maniac.” It’s not a bad song, but it’s nothing to be remembered. “Maniac” is pretty basic and a standard thrash tune. Not much really shines from this one other than Clayton’s vocals. It is probably a good live song, but on a recording, it might get skipped.

Pound for pound, Bludvera has what it takes to make it in the thrash metal realm. They have good song writing capabilities, band members that know how to do their job, and a hell of a vocalist. This demo shows a lot of potential and well worth checking out. Not all of the tracks are amazing and it can be a little too simple sometimes, but this is a demo for a reason, not all of the songs are the final versions. A full length album should be fantastic when it is finally released.