Dust Bolt’s comeback in full force!
Formed in Germany in 2007, the band led by Lenny B. (vocals/guitar), Flo D. (guitar), Nico R. (drums) and their new bassist Tom Liebing (Cyber Messiah, Exxperior) announce the release of Sound & Fury, their new album, via AFM Records.
The album kicks off with the energetic Leave Nothing Behind and its cutting riffs imbued with a raw groove and supported by furious vocal parts that calm down to create much more accessible choruses. The vindictive Thrash roots are well and truly present, but there are also screaming Heavy influences in the melodies that lead us to the heavy I Witness, a composition that leaves an important role to bass while injecting elements that are sometimes catchy, sometimes much heavier. I am the One continues in the same vein, combining an effective rhythm with motivating vocal parts and some sharper harmonics and lively patterns, as confirmed by the short New Flame, with its Old School sounds that also dip into burnt-out Hard Rock. With its melancholic guitar introduction, Burning Pieces allows us to float for a moment, but quietude is quickly trampled underfoot by the four musicians and their danceable saturation, then it’s with Sound and Fury that the band intends to incite the crowds to stir, before shading their rage with softer, unifying choruses. Those less accustomed to boundless mixes will be surprised by the liveliness of Love & Reality, a track that is once again highly rhythmic and catchy, skilfully blending the most enthusiastic parts of the mix before allowing the very short Bluedeep to offer us an almost… worrying interlude, leading us into Disco Nnection, which resumes in cheerful tones coupled with a groovy, solid rhythm and Glam Metal-inspired backing vocals and leads. The festive mood is assured with this track, but it’s shattered by You Make Me Feel (Nothing) and its dark, half-vindictive half-worrying tones, which gradually end up drowning in hatred and incorporating hoarse howls. The infectious energy returns on Feel the Storm, where musicians return to a more traditional Heavy and Thrash Metal approach, then fades again on Little Stone, where keyboards and clear vocals give this ballad a very melodic and soothing touch to close the album.
Dust Bolt knows how to play with rage to play Thrash at full speed, that’s a fact. But with Sound & Fury, the band explores much more varied landscapes, integrating ever more influences to shade their riffs, making them melodious, or sometimes even melancholic.
75/100