Rat Cage are back with a feral new release, and it’s as bleak and pulverising as the times demand. Combining the full-frontal blast of Totalitär, the tearaway rock ‘n’ roll of Herätys and the rabid, snarled catchiness of Negative Approach it’s as brutal and effective as a punch to the throat. Torn-larynx hollers, rocket-powered rhythms and cruelly cavorting leads are all pushed as far into the red as they’ll go without disintegrating, but amid the chaos there’s also a tendency toward hooks capable of burrowing like maggots into the rotten meat of your brain. Highlights are plenty, but ‘I.D.C.’ sounds like a deadly, jubilant bar brawl, ‘Spitting On The Ceiling’ lobs in some unexpected synths and closer ‘Nothing’s Sacred Anymore’ injects its full-weight käng with a towering sense of heavy metal bombast. It’s all a bit bloody good, really, and comes very highly recommended indeed.
