AGAINST EVIL – End Of The Line

Explaining all points of the global Metal scene that make it such an amazing international and multicultural community is something one could go on for hours and thus it could result in a piece of text that might be longer than any review ever written. But it is beyond any doubt that if one was asked to pick just one, then it would be very likely to be the fact that thanks to the globalization (and digitization) of all Metal scenes in the world and combining them into one vibrant collective one can listen to Metal that literally comes from the other end of the planet. Metal from the Philippines may sound different than Metal from Peru. But despite those rather minor differences, both are still Metal, just in their own unique way. One of those bands from far and away – for those who live in Europe or North America, that is – is the Indian quartet called Against Evil. All the way from the state of Andhra Pradesh, their new album titled End of the Line is due to see the light of day very soon and it is pretty damn diverse.

The record starts with a song titled “The Sound of Violence” and it’s quite a surprise, although not necessarily a positive one. The overall sound of this track might make the listener think that if the guys had any drugs in order to fuel their creativity up, then it had to be something like ketamine. The very beginning is really missing the dynamics and just sounds a bit sleepy overall – although perhaps that was the purpose. It’s certainly not the kind of violence an average evil and violence thirsty Metal fan might expect from “A Lesson in Violence” by Exodus or “Gods of Violence” by Kreator. But the good thing is that the song gets better eventually, especially when the powerful harmonic minor solo kicks in. Luckily, the above statement can be used for the entire album – because it gets better with each song. The next composition titled “Speed Demon” has a lot more kick to it. It’s not just the nice bass intro, but also the rather mysterious sound of the guitars that makes it a really decent track. In the meantime, all those who like the low frequencies should prepare for the next song “Out for Blood” – it features a special guest whose name is Billy Sheehan… and that just can be heard. That good old Hard Rock kick so typical for such bands as Scorpions, Whitesnake or Cinderella accompanied by an incredibly flippant bass line – yes, this album is getting better with each song and there are nine of them here.

Aside from sounding rather old school, the songs by Against Evil also have a fairly modern sound to them. The self-titled track off End of the Line is a great example. This song could easily be featured in such a PC game as Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2. It would sound perfect alongside such killers as “Guerrilla Radio” by Rage Against The Machine or “You” by Bad Religion. It’s nice to hear that the guys at Against Evil clearly listen to a lot of various bands since aside from the 80s Hard Rock, their songs can bring such acts as Mudvayne or Mötley Crüe to mind. Especially the last song, titled “Fearless” which sounds much like a combination of high speed Glam Metal with a hint of early Bay Area Thrash Metal. The guys at Against Evil sure do know how to write amazing stuff.

To conclude this review, End of the Line is a decent album and there are some songs on it that might sound even better live. It’s hard to say whether the world is witnessing the birth of a new legendary act, but it’s definitely nice to see that the global Metal scene is kept alive by such bands as Against Evil. One can hope for them to play plenty of gigs outside of India as soon as the life on Earth is back to normal.