Volatile Morning: “Tales of the Off Man” – pure, unfiltered skull-hammering!
The Fayetteville, GA based power trio, Volatile Morning, made up of Trevor Barksdale (drums, vocals), Tyler Chase (guitars) and Ben Moore (bass) create the tightest, most frenetic energy and definitely the loudest, hardest and rawest, heavy rock n’ roll, for a young up and coming band as I have heard. It isn’t like the songs ever overstay their welcome, either. On their EP, “Tales of the Off Man” nothing is longer than 3 minutes. They never really stagnate due to the immense amount of energy and drive put into the performances. From start to finish, this is just about the rawest blend of metal and hard rock you will come across in 2019. Everything is a testament to just how driven and passionate Volatile Morning’s music is.
Every last riff on this 4 track recording is driven, aggressive, dirty and fuckin’ cool. They are meaty and powerful in their sound. The bass lines are loud and follow the riffs closely, further reinforcing the guitar and giving it that extra bit of grunt, not that it needed them in the first place.
The drums are booming and banging, throwing in loads of little fills and rolls along with the simple straight beats. The solos are bluesy, pedal driven, and melodic, serving as an interesting counterpoint to the rough as hell vocal performance. Everything about their music fits together to form one massive rocking whole.
The opening intro “Trail” kicks in with ethereal keyboards that are meant to fool you about what’s coming next. As soon as “For Sjws”, replaces it, the guitars play their punkish heavy metal and hard rock riffs with the utmost urgency and carefree nature, the drums sound like the beating of an anvil, while the bass fills all around, what isn’t there to like?
This is the very embodiment of what visceral heavy metal is. Barksdale’s vocals are about as gritty and gravely as they come, yet there is still a discernible melody in his growling range. The wicked combination of chunky, distorted bass work with crunchy rock guitar riffs create an aggressive feel that is nasty enough for hardcore.
You don’t have to be ground-breaking, sophisticated, or even a technical monster to record classic heavy metal. All you need to do is to rock really fucking hard and have the balls to back it up.
Such is the case with Volatile Morning, one of this year’s grimiest, most badass bands to have kicked some ass and played some tunes. And they display their singular vision of playing loud, hard, heart-pounding, adrenaline-surging rock and roll on “Off Man Speaks”, which manages to maintain a slow burning tempo.
The closing track, “Surpass” might just be the best of the bunch with its Black Sabbath stoner rock type flavor. If you are hungry for the purest form of hardcore rock n’ roll, this is it. This isn’t just a rabble trying to play louder than anyone else, but three fine musicians proud of their craft. Here, the guys offer their best musicianship, lyrics, vocals, and attitude.
If you like your rock or heavy metal hard dirty and raw, it doesn’t get much better than “Tales of the Off Man”. From the ethereal notes of the opening track to the final thunderous riffs of the closing song, this is Volatile Morning in top form, for pure, unfiltered skull-hammering!
