Devilfire: Black Soul Vendetta

Perception is an interesting thing. Call your band Devilfire and name your albums Dark Manoeuvres and now Black Soul Vendetta, and it’s no surprise that these Birmingham, UK rockers are thought of as hard hitting purveyors of the dark arts playing at the more spooky end of the spectrum. And yet, when I slip this little beauty of a second album into the player, what comes roaring out of my speakers is nigh on perfect British hard rock with a melodic edge. Think Little Angels (horns and all) fused onto the side of Thunder, injected with a little No Sweat and then smoothed down with a quick rubbing of FM and behold, I give you Devilfire, one of the most exciting acts to have emerged in recent years.

I mean these guys don’t just run about ticking all my personal musical boxes, they careen headlong into choruses so big I can barely see where they begin or end - and all wrapped together with some tight as hell riffing, a singer who has it all - passion, power, precision and poise - and the ability to offer it all up in memorable packages that are set to detonate as soon as you glance at them. The guy behind the mic is called Alex Cooper and while he may not be Alice’s great great grandson, a one-time guitarist and backing singer in that wily veteran’s band does lend a hand with the songwriting on a couple of numbers here. The mid-paced “Dream Evil�, which admittedly does add a slightly darker edge to Cooper’s Danny Bowes (Thunder) meets Grand Prix era Robin MacAuley throat thrusts, and the bluesier piledriver of “Chasing The Pain�, both being co-written by Eric Dover.

That these star name collaborations are strong offerings but nowhere near the best on display on Black Soul Vendetta, is a real testament to Devilfire. “Vendetta� dripping with atmosphere and power, “Dead Man Walking� in possession of a chorus that will see it fit and healthy until the end of time and “What You Pay For� snarling, snapping and standing to attention in a way that I’ve not heard for many a decade. But then “Black Soul Bones� decides to bring the spooky side that was maybe more expected, before both “You’re Gonna Break My Heart Again� and “Wasn’t It Love� turn back the clock to the days when ballads were delivered with power. Covering the bases? This lot are blowing them clean out of existence!

Watching a band grow and begin to truly reach their potential is satisfying indeed and with Black Soul Vendetta, Devilfire are doing exactly that. Considering they are only two albums in, what they could be capable of as the years progress is worth getting excited about. In the meantime this’ll do nicely and then some!

Track Listing
1. Cruelest Animal
2. Chasing The Pain
3. Live A Lie
4. Vendetta
5. Dead Man Walking
6. Dream Evil
7. Justify
8. Sell My Soul
9. You’re Gonna Break My Heart
10. What You Pay For
11. Black Soul Bones
12. Decadence
13. Wasn’t It Love?

Added: November 21st 2020
Reviewer: Steven Reid
Score:
Related Link: Devilfire online
Hits: 896
Language: english

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