The metal scene in Calgary is chock full of great talent – events like MetalFest are proof of that – and for the last eight months, Breed of War has been growing into a dark little favourite right under our noses.
BoW has recently released Blood – a five song EP that beats the old metal drums in a refreshing way that even the uninitiated can appreciate.
Their latest single is Reborn, a quick and dirty power hit that crackles with electricity. Leading with a solid metal beat intro, the song quickly pulls you past the percussion and sizzling guitars into a head-bobbing rhythm and some better-than-average metal vocals. Finding that beautiful balance of fierceness and comprehendability, BoW has a single that shows some chops, and will probably go into my personal rotation for the gym.
Overall, the band has a young, energetic vibe who say they want to become a professional touring band, and “will stop at nothing to achieve their goals”. Their sound is a little hard to pin down, but you could call it modern-with-a-retro-twist. It’s fresh where it needs to be, but you can hear the homages to older metal genres and sounds. There are elements of thrash metal that pop up over top from time to time, with a bit of a Iron Maidenesque new-wave energy, while the imagry, song complexity and hard vocals speak more to a death-metal upbringing. It’s a deep mix, but BoW seems to pull it all into a complexly interesting mixture, allowing each part to compliment and sharply contrast the others.
The single was released on April 15th, and you can hear it for free on the band’s Bandcamp page; or you can check them out in person at Dickens on May 30th with West of Hell, Armifera and Scarbelly Creek.
