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Track Listing: Malverde Wires Hank Is Dead Dirt Wizard Throw Up Painted Parade Number Thirteen Into the Eye The Undertow Human Herd

Red Fang is what I would describe as a 'basement rock' band, purely because their music fits perfectly in a small, dingy, basement-type ambience rather than a huge theatre or arena. They turned quite a few heads with their self-titled debut that was released in 2009, and have been an actively touring band since, gladly doing the hard grind of driving around the country and beyond, merely for the love of performing their music. Now they're back with a brand new full-length album titled 'Murder The Mountains', and I expected great things from it when I gave it a spin for the first time.

The album gets off to a killer start with "Malverade", which sets the tone for the nine tracks to follow. Slow, smooth and trippy are some of the adjectives that can be used in an attempt to accurately describe this song, a thoroughly enjoyable tune. "Wires" is an interesting follow-up to say the least. It starts out raw and full of distortion, but then a dark guitar harmony kicks it into a completely different gear. With brilliantly composed tracks such as this, Red Fang have proven that a song can consist of good progressions without being 29 minutes in length. "Hank Is Dead" is a much more upbeat tune that casual listeners should find easier to listen to. The riffs and solos are simple yet put together in a manner that has the Red Fang stamp all over it.

"Dirt Wizard" dishes up yet more trippy hard rock and ensures that the album continues to kick ass. Red Fang's music has been described as something that can be appreciated equally by both the thinking listener and the head-banging listener, and this track is the perfect example of exactly that. "Throw Up" is the longest track on the album. It's sort of attritional in its style and builds up very gradually. The drumming here is the most standout aspect. Other than that the track makes use of various distortion techniques and down-tuning on the guitar most of which are unique to this track alone. "Painted Parade" is a completely contrasting tune as it hits hard right from its first drum beat. This one should be an instant hit among fans and new listeners alike.

"Number Thirteen" is a masterful composition The multi-layering of vocals serves as a great variation, blending powerfully with the music. Seldom have I come across tunes that are as engaging as this one, drawing me into such an oblivion that I just couldn't have enough of it the first time I heard it and as a result I ended up listening to it several times on a trot. "Into The Eye" is a doom-laden track, perhaps the slowest and most downbeat tune on the entire album but is in no way a one-dimensional song. It's interspersed with some nicely crafted guitar solos and subtle variations in tempo. "The Undertow" is a dark, beautiful, and powerfully mesmerizing tune that is capable of igniting the listener's deepest senses, while "Human Herd" is a rather grungy, straightforward end to an otherwise terrific album.

Overall, the best aspect of comparing this album with the band's debut is that it simply can't be compared. There are parts that are more raw and doom-laden as compared to the previous album, while there are others that are smooth and psychedelic. So it's hard to point a finger and say which album is heavier, darker or whatever other adjective you might want to compare the two for. As guitarist/vocalist Bryan Giles aptly describes the new album, it's "smeavy", and highly recommended to all fans of hard rock.

If as a rock fan you haven't gotten into Red Fang yet, this is the best time to do so. A 40, a joint and a copy of "Murder The Mountains" is all you need to find yourself in mental bliss.