With Birmingham-based Death Metal act Benediction on a seemingly indefinite hiatus, and fellow Midlanders Bolt Thrower having officially called it a day, it doesn’t come as any great surprise to find the two regional bands putting their creative heads together to produce some good old fashioned, balls out Death Metal. Combining the sound of both bands and adding the cantankerous thrash of criminally overlooked Brummies Sacrilege into the mix, Memoriam have arrived to make your neck wish it had never been born.

Before hitting us with their first full-length later in the year, the band has released two singles to make people sit up and take notice first. 7” number one, The Hellfire Demos (Cosmic Key Creations) was released last year, and contains ‘War Rages On’ and ‘Resistance’; groove-laden slabs of old school Death Metal which will please more than most fans of the genre, especially the full throttle middle section of the latter track.

Latest incarnation, The Hellfire Demos II (Nuclear Blast) comprises ‘Drone Strike’ and ‘Surrounded (By Death)’ and continues to lay the groundwork for the upcoming debut in the best possible way. The voice of former Bolt Thrower singer Karl Willetts is as welcome and recognisable as an old friend, and the face of bassist Frank Healy will be a familiar sight to anyone from the Birmingham area.

The rest of the band is made up of former Bolt Thrower drummer Andy Whale who double-kicks to his heart’s content, and guitarist Scott Fairfax (Benediction, Life Denied) who spits out riff after chunky riff.

Delivering classic Death Metal just the way you like it, Memoriam sound exactly as you expect them to, but more importantly, they sound exactly as you want them to.

8.0/10

 GARY ALCOCK