By Monk
For the past 40 years, LA power brokers Ruthless have been one of those bands who have skirted around the edges of the US traditional metal scene without emulating the success of many of their (obviously) well-known contemporaries. Part of this reason is because it could be argued that they have never quite lived up their name, never quite going in for the kill during a stop-start career – one put on hold for half of those four decades – which has resulted in the fact that this is only their fourth album release.
One thing that is extremely obvious right from the opening salvo of the title track is that Ruthless, and particularly frontman and driving force Sammy DeJohn, have made absolutely no attempt to move with the times, and unashamedly so. Rather than embracing the NWoUSTHM, with its amalgamation of myriad external influences into the basic generic formula, Ruthless have remained very firmly locked in the classroom of the old school way of doing things, and that is producing no-nonsense riffs coupled with massive melodies, interjected with steak-searing solos – and, believe me, new guitarist Glen Paul has an impressive arsenal of same – and held down with battering ram percussion that takes no prisoners and shows no mercy (sic) in its impact.
Very much melding the no-nonsense see-you-at-the-end approach, via its unrelenting pace throughout, with the sense of grandiose pomposity that lies at the heart of much to “traditional” metal, mixed with plenty of political posturing in its lyrical context, ‘The Fallen’ is a taut and effective album. Drawing on elements of Judas Priest (‘No Mercy’ and Dio (‘End Times’) as much as it does counterparts such as Metal Church and Helstar, it is a testament written by a band determined to stick to both their guns and their roots.
DeJohn has a hugely impressive voice, with a suitably wide range – just listen to those screams on ‘The Fallen’ and ‘End Times’ which helps to add to the atmospherics, hyperbole and overall impact. Longstanding sidekick Bob Guitrau is a true tour-de-force behind the kit, switching from double-kicked blast beats to straight ahead snappiness with ease, all the while supported by the deep rumbling bass work of Sandy K. Vasquez, who more than capably lends that underpinning sense of foreboding (see ‘Soldiers Of Steel’ as an exemplar) that true metal should possess. Finally, Glen Paul truly knows how to rip up a fretboard, but at the same time possesses that sense of restraint coupled with the ability to switch the mood of his playing to match that of the material, rather than just waiting for his moment to shred himself to hell and back.
Overall, a decent, solid heavy metal album from a decent, solid heavy metal band. Worth checking out if you like your metal with the chalk of the old school blackboard still ingrained under its fingernails. \m/
- ‘The Fallen‘ is released today (Friday 12 January).
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