Artist: Solicitor
Album: Spectral Devastation
Label: Gates of Hell Records
Style: Speed Metal, baby!
Release Date: April 24, 2020
Solicitor hails from Seattle, Washington, and they have unleashed an epic for our times. This is their first full-length, following a demo and an EP (both from 2019) and oh hell yes this a treat for tired (Metal) ears. Bringing an onslaught of riffs and pure, maniac speed and aggression, Solicitor is another 80s-type throwback that takes what worked then and add their own spin on the subgenre.
Blazing right of the gates (of Hell) with “Blood Revelations,” all speed and fury and pacing, the guitars sawing and buzzing and cutting down everything in their path, accentuated by perfectly-timed double bass drumming and underpinning bass guitar, and taken completely over the top with the scorching vocals of Amy Lee Carlson (it’s like someone sandpapered Rob Halford’s vocal chords). Song number one is a template of what’s to come, as we see the band rip it apart but also wisely throw in some mid-paced sections to add that extra crunch and pause that makes the speedier parts more powerful. And on we cruise, the band never letting up, slowing down a bit here and there to let you catch your breath. How about that “Diary of a Madman” quote at the end of “Red Queen?” It really shows you where the heart of this band lies, and that’s with tearing your face off, Metal-style. It continues on, songs like “Night Vision” adding more acoustics to bring a bit of epic atmosphere to the proceedings before it absolutely (you guessed it) proceeds to rage almost beyond control, galloping with wild abandon. At times, things feel barely contained, a train just about to jump the tracks, but each time the band pull it back, reigning in at the last moment. The album ends with rager “Grip of the Fist,” a track that kicks your ass good and hard on the way out the door, a final reminder of what you came here for, and what you got, in spades.
2020 has been a hell of a year so far, full of misery and weirdness. But it’s also been a hell of a year for Metal, too. Add Solicitor to your burgeoning list of Album of the Year contenders. It’s over the top, loud, aggressive, and full of spite and venom, rocking your ass right into the ground.
The Wizard Has Spoken!
Four Wands out of Five