La Boca de la Bestia

The last full-length album from Hirax, El Rostro De La Muerte (The Face of Death), deserved the portmanteau of “thrashterpiece.” Ever since its release in 2009, I've eagerly awaited a follow-up—I’m still waiting; although, the pain has been slightly eased by the electronic release of a single titled “La Boca de la Bestia (The Mouth of the Beast).” Immediately, we see that Hirax still have much respect and continue to pay homage toward their biggest fan base: Latin America. I would argue, though, that if they were able to have wider and fuller tours, their fan base would be even larger in many other areas; touring is, at worst, the necessary and arduous evil of promoting and fan gathering.

The intro of this song, after the building guitars, is very similar to Fueled by Fire’s “Command of the Beast,” but coincidences are not rare within the short range of sounds that register pleasure within the human ear and are easily forgivable when the music itself is, in the best possible way, bestial! Hirax continue to generate what their fans want, and always will on both sides of the transaction; that is, pure old school riffs and absolutely shredding solos. The solos themselves do not overstay or understay their welcome, they are just right, like thrash metal porridge. Finally, and perhaps even mostly, there is the underground legendary vocalist, Katon W. de Pena, who cannot be mimicked: his voice is truly inimitable and in this song he screams and chants as usual, along with a gratuitous amount of freedom in regards to style (once, at the end of the verse “wings of steel” he adds a short vocal quaver).

The upcoming full-length album, titled Immortal Legacy (arguably fitting), comes out 24 September. The artwork will be done by the hands of Philip Lawvere, returning to the metal scene after a long absence and best known for classic Kreator covers such as Pleasure to Kill. At the producer’s helm is the famed Bill Metoyer who has worked with Slayer, Sodom, and numerous other bands. There is a concentration of legacy coming together to create this opus, and I wager it’ll be immortal.

Published in Mane Stage: http://manestage.blogspot.com/2013/07/single-review-hirax-la-boca-de-la-bestia.html