MALEVOLENCE

Malicious Intent (Nuclear Blast)

Look closely at the spearhead of a slew of British metal bands and you will find Sheffield mob Malevolence. Emerging from the hardcore scene with a winning combination of punishing breakdowns mixed with epic NOLA-inspired melody, the boys return from a successful UK arena stint with Architects to unleash Malicious Intent upon us.

And malicious it is. Nasty riffs share time with some inspired guitar work to create something quite rare in the world of heavy music. Look at On Broken Glass for further evidence, a track that grabs from several genres of heavy music and masters all of them. There are guest spots for Matt Heafy from Trivium and Kublai Khan’s Matt Honeycutt, but the best work on the album is all Malevolence’s own doing. Malicious Intent is a giant of an album and represents a massive step on the upward curve that Malevolence find themselves on.

words CHRIS ANDREWS