Heavy Metal from the Caucasus is what we have today for you my friends. Where is the Caucasus you may ask, and uncle Google says is the area that incorporates parts of Russia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Turkey and Iran. The band is CONCRETE AGE and their proposal is Ethnic Metal (!?) enveloped in Thrash. The first tune is “Raida Rada” that starts with a traditional folkloric chant that suddenly punches you in the face with some high quality Thrash Metal. The band wisely mixes the traditional local melodies with the violent metal output and does not compromise on both. We follow with “Battle For The Caucasus' ' and I am loving this already. The band adds some traditional musical instruments amongst the chaos and is able to make all sound like a perfect match.

CONCRETE AGE has been on the road for at least 15 years already and it clearly shows in this album. Well seasoned musicians can be heard and I am surprised that it is (kind of) a trio, but a very powerful one. Each song on this album seems to have something different to say like the demoniac “Mestizo” and the beautiful “Nomads”. Yes beautiful, as once again, the traditional instruments of the region are interwoven in the song seamlessly changing the mood and adding something different. The band has a good singer in Ilia Morozov with a voice that can go from melodic to guttural in a split second. He also plays guitar and takes care of all the local traditional instruments. And the traditional instruments are basically starting all the songs paving the way for a sequence of pure musical ethnic violence as you can hear on “Mouth of the Elbrus” and “Kara Kol”. It is difficult to pick up a favorite on this album as all the songs seems unique.

CONCRETE AGE also has a good drummer , not credited, that commands the double bass drum chaos and also adds some touches on the traditional rhythms of the region bringing an extra flavor to the drums. I just hope that it is not a programmed drum machine. Some songs have the thrash drumming mixed with traditional percussion from the region dressing the songs with more personality. However, the band is still relentless in their Thrash output. We also have a competent bass player in the band called Giovanni Ruiu that does not compromise and also adds some magic backing vocals on the folkloric innuendos. We reach “Shalaho”, which is another great tune and you may have already noticed that all the song titles are also rooted in the local traditions and historic tales. “Cossack's Pride” starts with a folkloric chant and the speed drums and crazy riffs come right next. It would be a crime not to mention the also good guitar player Boris Zahariev with his piercing solos. We reach the end of our journey with the greats “Adeghaga,” and a cover of a song from a local traditional musician  Magamet Dzibov called “Hasbulat”.

Each of the songs are heavy as fuck but it carries enough interesting moods with the addition of local instruments. Great album that takes the traditional Thrash Metal to a new level by adding their beautiful culture to the songs making them sound unique. I can see that Metal in general is continuing to spread their arms and presenting new ideas as this is a genre that will never die.