Prisoner 639 are from Belgium and play grinding powerviolence. They have teamed up for this split with Dutch sludge band Throw Me in the Crater.
Prisoner 639 get things going in a slow-burning fashion, opening up with lots of noise, distortion and feedback. Before long some drums and bass enter the fray, producing grim sludgy sounds. After a couple of minutes of this the speed is increased and punkier influences come to the foreground, including a variety of growled/shouted vocals.
The song is raw and primitive, reminding me of a mix of early Cripple Bastards, Nightstick and Atomsmasher, if the production values were low and the delivery was as raw as you could get it without getting into the realms of the unlistenable.
An enjoyable and unconventional clash of grind, punk and sludge.
After this we have Throw Me in the Crater with Mount Tambora, which, after Prisoner 639’s mutant extremity, is a lot more of a conventional sludge metal song, if there is such a thing.
Taking the classic sludge metal template from genre godfathers Eyehategod, Throw Me in the Crater produce a rumbling, belligerent song that has plenty of energy, style and stonking riffs.
The track has a good groove to it, easily getting you moving and pumped for the band. Apart from the obvious Eyehategod references, the song really puts me in mind of 90s-era Relapse Records; listening to it I feel quite nostalgic!
Mount Tambora is a very enjoyable and accomplished sludge metal song that’s played and delivered with obvious passion. What more is there to say?
Check out this split.
Wonderbox Metal 