All Is Chaos

Steak Number Eight is a metal band out of Belgium and a highly talented one for that matter. Having randomly stumbled upon this album while on a trip to England, I was fearful that this would be some kind of metalcore-style crap. Thankfully, it wasn't and it completely blew me away the second I hit play.

It's mix of brutal, monstrously heavy sludge riffs and smooth, atmospheric leads, and with its surprisingly bearable vocals it really caught my attention. The fact that this band is so young and have already achieved an impressive level of musicianship is something few bands can get away with. They won a massive battle of the bands contest in their native land and the resulting success included touring across western Europe and the release of their debut album, 'When The Candle Dies Out'. A few years later, they coughed up what is a serious one-upped version of that album, 'All Is Chaos'.

This release kicks off with one of the funniest lines I've ever heard: "Your head is somewhat shaped like a banana... bananahead!"

After that, it just slaps you in the face with its heavy riffing, all on the first track, 'Dickhead'. The riffs are sludgy and violent, but they then change into soaring and equally atmospheric leads. The whole album is completely unpredictable, changing from sludgy to smooth in a matter of minutes. The vocals, unlike most sludge albums, are accessible, but still are rough with its share of screaming. It's a complete mindgame from start to finish. A lot of the songs are slow and even surprisingly quiet. There are some interesting moments that give the album the ability to consume its listener and throw him/her into a nightmarish and almost adolescent state of mind.

Steak Number Eight have succeeded in getting away with an original sound and passionate vocals with lyrics speaking of personal experiences and feelings. This is highly recommended to anyone looking for something different. 'All Is Chaos' is definitely on my list for best albums of 2012.