Monday, November 18, 2013

TABERAH: "Necromancer"

Rating: RRRR
Label: Dust On The Tracks Records 2013
Review by Rich Dillon

Hailing from Tasmania, Australia, the band Taberah started out in 2006 playing their first pub gigs when they were just 16 years of age, reminiscent of another Australian band, Silverchair who also started at a young age. As one of Australia’s fastest growing names they’ve opened for the likes of Paul Di’Anno, Steve Grimmett and Tim “Ripper” Owens, but it was being hand picked by Lemmy to open for Motorhead that really stands out in the resume. Self described as “heavy metal played with the spirit of rock and roll” and citing influences ranging from and including AC/DC, Queen, Motorhead, Thin Lizzy, Black Sabbath and Iron Maiden, their extensive touring schedule and entertaining live shows have garnered them a reputation as a “must see” band. Founder Jonathan Barwick handles the guitars and vocals while co-founder Tom “Bam Bam” Brockman sits behind the kit. The boys are joined by guitarist Myles “Flash” Flood and bassist Dave “The Doctor” Walsh to round out this sensation, or dare I say this “Thunder from Down Under”. I’m not sure where the band took it’s name from but from what I could find on the internet, Taberah, which means “burning” was a place that the Israelites passed through after the Exodus from Egypt, named because God, tired of their complaining, set fire to them.

Necromancer is their second release and follows 2011’s debut of The Light of Which I Dream. I cued up the digital download for play whilst performing some other tasks and chores. Immediately I was hooked and drawn in by the chunky bass lines and the larger than life guitar riffs leading the charge on the opening cut, “2012”. “Dying Wish” is up next, continuing the assault and found me neglecting the tasks at hand as I got deeper into the Taberah sound. The aforementioned influences can clearly be heard throughout, but the music is flavoured with a real euro/power metal taste as well.

From the catchy choruses like that of “Burning In The Moonlight”, guaranteed to have you humming along long after the song fades away to the charging assault of the abso-frikking-lutely awesome “The Hammer of Hades”, which is unfortunately the lone track under the four minute mark, this recording is chock-full of big crunchy riffs and catchy melodic hooks. The three-song punch to the gut finale of “The Hammer Of Hades”, “My Dear Lord” and “Burn” coupled with the lead cut of “2012” are worth the price of admission alone, but everything here is good, the sole exception being, “One Goon Bag Later”, the 1:49 minute instrumental that could have easily been omitted in my opinion.
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