It seems perfectly fitting that ‘Bombshell’ should kick off with the sound of a police siren given the outlaw nature of the rock ‘n roll revolution that The Black Bullets preach. Formed back in 2012, the band have unleashed (surely the only word for these explosive blasts of rock ‘n’ roll noise) three Eps upon the world of which ‘Bombshell’ is the latest. Kicking out four tracks in a mere ten minutes, The Black Bullets are interested only in kicking out the jams, laying waste to the dancefloor and defiling any young ladies within reach and ‘Bombshell’ perfectly captures their hedonistic attitude.
Kicking off with the violent riffage of ‘Riding Shotgun’, ‘Bombshell’ sets the pace as Carl D’s drums thunder into view and Liar Billy T’s sneering vocals assault the listener with all the force of John Lydon being molested by Bon Scott. With a gang vocal chorus of “running from the law with my dreams of rock ‘n roll”, this is the sort of pure rock fantasy that powered Guns ‘n’ roses at the outset and it says much of the po-faced state of rock that The Black Bullets have had to remind us that rock ‘n’ roll is supposed to be fun! The Eps title track is no less explosive, with Lance Skybaby’s lead guitar and Skinn Klick’s rhythm work driving the song over the sort of thunderous beat that the likes of Kiss and Alice Coper used to command at will. This is pure good time rock ‘n’ roll with a razor sharp edge whilst the chorus is to die for – a stadium demolishing blast of feral riffs and massed vocals that makes you want to leap from your chair. With dark subject matter, and a riff that gives off so much heat you’re lucky to avoid sunburn, ‘Suicide kid’ is heavy rock with surfer overtones (think Dick Dale) and a healthy dose of punk thrown in for good measure. The EP ends with the shock and awe assault of ‘firefly’, a punked up beast of a track that sees Liar Billy T delivering his most brutal vocal performance to date. A full-throttle blast, ‘firefly’ is the sort of pile-driving heavy rock that digs deep into the soul and demands utter allegiance. Make no mistake – The Black Bullets are destined for bigger things if they keep delivering heavy duty rock of this calibre.
‘Bombshell’ is exactly that. Short, brutal and to the point, it sees the band combine hard-hitting riffs, razor-sharp vocals and near perfect production to blistering effect. It’s also a stark reminder that too few bands deal in this type of good-time, hell-drenched hard rock and, as a result, The Black Bullets stand out proud form the pack. In short The Black Bullets may well be your new favourite band – don’t miss out!
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