[sep 13]
The Black Hand - Pulling Your Strings 10"
I don’t know what to say about this record that really is 1:1 with my feelings about it. Originally this was the bands’ demo recorded in March 2000 and you can actually call this the follow up to IRE since 4 guys of IRE are in this band now. Well, Marc showed up one day and said this would be something he’s sure I would really like... Since most of the time he tries to push new/technical Death Metal on me that lacks the last 20 or 10% to be really good shit up to my standards this thing smashed me!!! I hardly hear music these days that really fucks me up emotionally – you know, you start to mosh like a maniac right from the first second you put it on. There are or were maybe like 10 bands out there that gave me or still give me goose flesh when I listen to them. Imagine how you feel when you’re listening to your most favorite band – that’s how I feel when I listen to THE BLACK HAND. Considering the music to me it sounds like the perfect mix – and I really mean perfect - between old CATHARSIS, mid- to up-tempo HIS HERO IS GONE and Scandinavian Death Metal like DISMEMBER. Imagine these three bands would melt together, add the bassplayer for BOLT-THROWER, move to Sweden, enter Sunlight Studios, Fred Estby would turn the knobs and create this monster... when actually they recorded it themselves. This sounds so fucking heavy and brutal but still remains so natural – pure emotions and despair put on tape, vinyl, CD whatever.