SHOCK – Once Denied

Independent
Released
Reviewed by Shane Pinnegar
7.5/10

If you’re feeling reminiscent for a blast of old school heavy rock that is completely devoid of the whiney ‘woe is me’ mentality that dragged grunge and nu-metal into the dumps, then wrap your leather studded fist around this platter from the mighty SHOCK.

Formed in 1985, Shock fought hard in the Canadian metal trenches, plying the sort of denim n’ leather metal which Saxon, Raven, Anvil and early Metallica and Anthrax will give themselves sore necks over.

Breaking up around 1990, they reformed in 2012 and have finally (hence the title) delivered a set of heavy rocking tunes that boast a complete absence of slap bass, aquanet or face paint.

This is all metal, all real, all old school and all overflowing with monstrous riffs, catchy melodies and the kind of psycho killer (Slashing To Live, Driven To Kill), tough guy (Fighting Chance, I’m Dangerous), fantasy (Flaming Towards Earth) and cold war-relevant (Splitting The Atom) lyrics that abounded back in those cut-off denim jacket days.

Young pups who revel on the intricate mathcore stylings of today’s technical noodlers may find Shock overly-simplistic or, worse, dated, but in their steadfast refusal to ‘modernise’ lies great purity and belief.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Shock/155776471171802

www.shockmetal.ca

Category: CD Reviews