Vim Fuego
Back in the 1980s, teens who had been raised on big doses of Iron Maiden, Metallica and Megadeth got together to form their own bands. While most of these bands disappeared without trace, a few became big names in the Metal scene, like Pantera, Flotsam and Jetsam, Death Angel and New Zealand’s own Shihad. In their original incarnations, these bands combined the aggression and high level of musicianship of their idols, while injecting an element of melody and subtlety not seen before in such intense music. World domination beckoned.
Of course, we know now, in perfect 20/20 hindsight, it didn’t happen. Sure, Pantera made it big, but lost their melody. Flotsam and Jetsam lost bassist and main songwriter Jason Newstead to Metallica. Death Angel disintegrated, and Shihad abandoned Metal for a successful career in Alternative land.
However, there is hope. Growing up on large doses of Megadeth, Metallica and Iron Maiden, Ashburton, New Zealand’s Inertia have come up with a sound something like a 21st century version of Flotsam and Jetsam, Death Angel and Shihad. What’s more, the members of Inertia were in nappies when these bands were making their names. A happy coincidence? Most certainly, because this band hadn’t even heard Flotsam and Jetsam, Death Angel and early Shihad when they recorded this five song demo.
Opening track “Judgement Day” starts with an acoustic intro, before blasting in to the main body of the song, which bears a passing resemblance to Flotsam and Jetsam’s “No Place For Disgrace”. The interplay of the rhythm guitar and bass is particularly impressive, particularly for such young musicians.
Second track “Comets” is a longer song, showing a potential for future epics from this band. The song clocks up a high riff count, without just throwing them together aimlessly, and shows a good understanding of song dynamics. The solos are great air guitar material too.
“Cold Night Air” changes the pace completely, starting as a dreamy ballad, hinting at full on power, but never fully unleashing. While attempting such a track on a demo could have been risky, Inertia pulls it off almost effortlessly.
“Waking The Dead” and “No-Mans Land” are a strong pair of songs to finish with, showing off how much fun old school melodic Thrash actually was.
As far as the sound quality goes, this is an excellent first demo. The instruments are well defined. Singer Adam Willis has a strong voice, at times reminiscent of Iron Maiden’s Bruce Dickinson, or Flotsam And Jetsam’s Eric AK. With more experience, he will develop into a powerful melodic vocalist.
This demo is a great start, from which this band will undoubtedly grow. It is a fresh shine on a once glorious, but much tarnished, brand of Heavy Metal.