RAZORWIRE
"League Of The Godless"

Tracklist

  1. Jettison
  2. League Of The Godless
  3. Template
  4. Spin The Wheel
  5. Make It Rain
  6. Lose My Head
  7. Only Son
  8. Trip Or Fly
  9. Just Another
  10. Guttermouth
  11. Still Waters Rising

RAZORWIRE - League Of The Godless

Check out the Psychophonic Store to buy this album!
Available from all good record shops including:
Amazon.co.uk
HMV
MVC


Released: 1st March 2003
Format: CD
Catalogue Number: PSYRAZ - 100
Recorded at Framework Studios, Birmingham, UK
Produced by Paul "Bag" Siddens
Engineered by Paul "Bag" Siddens and Simon Reeves
Mastered by Simon Reeves
Cover painting by Frank Hargrave
Graphic design by John Webb

Line-up:
Chris Minney - Vocals
Dan Peach - Rhythm Guitar
Charlie Cooper - Drums & Backing Vocals
Dan Carden - Lead Guitar
Andy Pancheri - Bass

This is the debut Razorwire album. It was the first "one band" album to be released on the Psychophonic label, as previously only compilations had been released, so it was very important for both the band and the label that this album was well received by the press.

"League..." received some excellent reviews (see below), and Razorwire embarked on a massive UK tour to promote it.

For more information on Razorwire, please visit their website.

REVIEWS

All reviews © magazine of original publication

Kerrang! (May 31st 2003)
Review by Alexander Milas

KKKK (out of 5)

An aggressive metal debut that's a cut above the rest.

SPIT IN any direction and you can be pretty sure you'll hit a band that's angry about something and wants you to know about it. But finding bands that do it well - brilliantly even - that's harder. Razorwire are one of those bands, and like a flying scissorkick to the ears when a slap is all that's necessary, they do it with style.

From the get-go it's clear that these Brit aggro-metallers could easily go 10 rounds with One Minute Silence or Suicidal Tendencies without breaking a sweat. With its punchy, riff-laden thrash-fu, 'League...' sizzles with an intensity and attitude that cuts through the bullshit and serves up a heady dose of no-nonsense, ball-slapping metal goodness.

Razor sharp.

Metal Hammer UK (June 2003)
Review by Chris Hodgson

Bands like Razorwire are a prime example of why any rock/metal fan should always keep an eye on the British underground as well as the bands taking up four page features riding a wave of hype. Pulling on influences ranging from metalcore, rap metal, thrash and hardcore and fusing them into a mouth wateringly cohesive stab of adrenalin, this Stoke 5-piece have created something altogether more accomplished that a (fairly) fresh faced bunch of rookies have any right to.

Opener 'Jettison' may pick up the baton recently dropped by Rage Against the Machine but is propelled along in altogether more violently metallic style than was ever used by the LA rap metallers. Vocalist Chris Minney appears completely at ease switching between high speed raps and Biohazard style aggro rants as used to some effect on the octane fuelled 'Spin the Wheel' with its dense, old school chorus, muscular rhythm and shameless lead breaks. 'League of theGodless' takes a clenched fist to the world of musical crosspollination to create the kind of
uncompromisingly brutal, yet melodic, experience that you need in your life. Go find!

8 / 10

(Please note that the above review is the advance un-edited copy. When it went to print, the reviews editor chopped out parts and lowered the score to 7/10).

Rock Sound (Issue 49, June 2003)
Review by Graham Finney

This lot have been descibed as sounding like One Minute Silence meets Therapy?, which isn't too far from the truth. Add a dash of old school, traditional metal and you've got the complete mix. 'League Of The Godless' is all rollicking riffs and dandruff-shaking melodies of the sort which not many new bands can pull off these days without sounding dated. If metal with balls is your thing then you could do a lot worse than this selection of tunes.

7/10

Powerplay
Review by Simon Gausden

First thoughts? Therapy. Second thoughts? No… more like One Minute’s Silence. Listening a third time, it hits me… it sounds rather like both of them… with bits of (Hed)PE thrown in too, come to think of it. So who are they? Well, they’re a Midlands based quintet: Chris Minney (vocals), Dan Peach (rhythm guitars), Charlie Cooper (drums), Dan Carden (lead guitars), and Andy Pancheri (bass), and this is their really rather good debut album. Produced by Paul Siddens and Simon Reeves, I’ll admit to playing this regularly of late. With 11 songs featured, it’s also not overlong at a slender 38 minutes, ensuring that by pursuing brevity, it never outstays it’s welcome. Well thought out chaps.

Punchy as hell, and positively dripping with attitude, this album is far more punk ‘n’ disorderly than 99% of the pop music with spiky hair that the US market keeps trying to flood us with. The sheer musical urgency and vitality on display points to these guys becoming something very special indeed. They also know how to tap into the anthemic chorus thing, ensuring that the likes of “Jettison”, “Spin The Wheel”, “Lose My Head”, and “Still Waters Rising” will be buzzing round your head for ages. The only real reservation I have is the ‘white boy rapping’ thing that infests much of their sound. It’s modern, almost nu, but not irritatingly so, and is pumped up with aggression like a pittbull on steroids. And yes, I can recommend it to you with a clear conscience.

7 / (10)

Metal UK.com
Review by Chris Clayton

Razorwire tread the same path as previous support-buddies FULC, in that they have pursued busy touring schedules as a way of building a dedicated fan base. Without bundles of hype behind them, the band have been proving their worth simply through monolithic audio power. With numerous promos and compilation appearances to their name, Razorwire have gradually refined their song writing abilities; until, presumably, those lingering ideas simply had to distilled into something. Thusly, the industrious ‘League Of The Godless’ was born.

Squeezing a plethora of musical influences into one sizable chunk of indefatigable metalcore, Razorwire are relentless and restless on this record. Chris Minney’s vocalising skips between Zack De La Rocha-esque rapping, hardcore screams, and the occasional death metal belch. Surprisingly, Minney works best when he’s playing with the more pronounced rap-metal elements that have gradually crept into the band’s repertoire; slicing through harsh rhythmic moments with ease. Musically, however, Razorwire are firmly rooted in the old-school. Angry guitars chop and change from style to style, with the occasional solo thrown in.

‘Lose My Head’ veers into ‘Roots’-era Sepultura in places; complete with caustic, chugging guitars. ‘Template’ erupts into one of the record’s finer riffs, while the flaming ‘Spin The Wheel’ is a simple exercise in persistent rage. Yet, Razorwire throw out their best tune when attempting to alter the formula somewhat. Thus, the album’s chirpy closer ‘Still Waters Rising’ displays an uncharacteristic peppering of melody; a welcome break from the preceding exercise in uncontrollable aggression.

‘League Of The Godless’ is an enjoyable record, with an unhealthy affection for exhaustive percussion and tireless energy. Perhaps more variation from song to song would have given the album a bit more breathing room, but this is still a quality representation of a band that is teetering on the edge of brilliance.

7/10

Tombstone.gr
Review by Agelos Kanarelis

These guys are actually coming from England and their music can be described as nu metal with some hard core elements to spice things up. This is actually their debut album and if you are into nu metal you’d better mark their name and remember it since you’ll hear from them again in the years to come and, trust us, from a bigger label. There’s aggressiveness in their music and they combine nu metal with a hard core attitude that adds to their music an edge not found in most American bands playing nu metal. Somehow they manage to sound both original and modern and their album is nicely produced. I might not be very much into nu metal but I can’t deny that these guys are good. Very good actually. I firmly believe that if they continue working like this they’ll soon be among the top acts in nu metal. A legend is born? Maybe but it’s still very early and there are a thousand things that can go wrong. For now all we can say is that they rock and if you are into nu metal you’ll love their album.

8/10

Hammerhead zine.com
Review by Matt

Here is a band that I have been writing about in my news section for a good amount of time. It just so happens that this UK band are offering up some sorta nu metal with rocking on "Jettison", while having some rap core, Rage Against… type of vocals in the mix. Then the title cut comes in and the band starts sounding more like Slayer in a way. It then goes in a Helmet area and some death metal vocals. "Spin The Wheel" does also offer up a nice little bash in the face. Much harder riffs are heard here. "Lose My Head" takes a more heavy hard-core approach that works out very cool. The different voice also seems to be a better feature about this band. "Only Son" definitely has a Biohazard and Stuck Mojo jive to it. "Just Another" is also another new trip in the nu metal territory and has harder sides to it. "Still Waters Rising" closes with a tiny rhasta sound and ends this long awaited record. The production could have been better but the difference in this music really serves as the example for this band that pieced a very good debut together. This could really break the US market right now. They could be on the good timing side with this record. Hope it gets enough promotion. http://www.razorwire.info

Musketeer Of Death.nl
Review by Emillio Verschueren

Razorwire presents on their debut album "League of the Godless" a fine crossover from
(nu-)metal, hardcore, rap metal and even some rock slices. Influences can be found in bands as One Minute Silence, Rage Against the Machine and Channel Zero. But also open-minded Therapy?, Slayer and Stuck Mojo fans could have a great time with this album.

The sound Razorwire creates is very raw and violent, still catchy and melodious. The rolling drums are dominant, the guitars penetrating and do have some great solid refined riffs; the bass is violent and threatening. The vocals are very diverse and go from normal singing to well pronounced fast raps to agro screams and even some brutal death grunts.

Although a song as Jettison could have an opportunity to get major airplay on an alternative rock station, don't expect some overproduced Linkin park shit. Razorwire blows all those popular nu metal/punk bands away. This is rough, honest and from the heart.
If you're sick and tired of all those average nu-MTV rock shit, check Razorwire and get surprised.

Concreteweb.be
Review by Tony

Okay, this is quite an impressive debut. Well, having been active since '97, the band has released a certain amount of demos before, earning comparisons to Kill II This, and One Minute Silence. The last ones I happen to know, and yes, they do sound alike... a bit more Aggro perhaps (for sure!), but the comparison is there. That has a lot to do with the vocals styling of Chris Minney, of course, but there is also the musical fillings! There is an added EmoCore feel in that voice combined with the backing vocals as well, but of the kind that keeps the listener enthralled. Guitar wise there's some occasionally crazy guitar solo on top of the mostly down tuned riffs. Great hooks and tempo changes, topped with some interesting (backing & lead) vocals, make for a good

90/100

Noise Culture (www.noise-online.com)
Review by Adrian Luther-Smith

There must be something in the water in Stoke-on-Trent, the rather ragged city that produced Discharge in the early Eighties and now Razorwire. Sheer bloody aggression is the common theme here but whereas Discharge eschewed melodies in favour of polemic rants, Razorwire have these softeners in spades. What's more, a refreshingly diverse range of styles sets Razorwire apart from the kind of metal bands who seem content to plough well furrowed areas to the point of tedium. Thus, we have rap, nu, thrash, hardcore and even death metal here. You can hear the influence of Rage Against the Machine, One Minute Silence, Sepultura, Therapy and even Slayer yet this band aren't plagiarists cos there's no attempt to simply emulate one set of heroes. It's as if they are determined to tackle and master every form of metal and make it their own, with the odd old skool guitar solos thrown in for good measure, as on Jettison. It's also to his credit that vocalist Chris Minney is more than adept at handling the speed raps and changes of range from hardcore bellowing to death growling.

The production sometimes allows the drums and guitars to collide when they should play off each other but that's probably just a reflection of budgetary restrictions. What's important is that the energy and anger comes through, which is does. Razorwire's lyrics are impressively pointed and pointing. And in these times of seemingly endless, mindless religion related conflicts, like the aforementioned Discharge, here's another Stoke band willing to point out the stupidity of those who preach hatred in the name of their supposed beliefs: "Faith comes cheap compared to wisdom". Too right.

Musicextreme.com
Review by Federico Marongiu

 

Starting with an awesome riff, the guys in Razorwire show that their music is powerful and can be classified as pure metal with influences from other styles. One influence that I can say that I listen in some parts is pure hardcore, such as in "League of the Godless".

There is melody in the vocals and they are used cleverly to add even more power to the music. This guy is really versatile using melodies and even some death metal voices in the most aggressive parts. The guitars have a really modern sounding creating clever arrangements in a not typical way. The combination of melody and aggression is Razorwire´s trademark and combined with a really modern sound they have achieved a really good result with this release.