THE HOLE is a three piece (previously four piece) band that formed in 2010 out of Las Palmas, Spain. After releasing their first album "A Monument to the End of the World", THE HOLE underwent a couple of lineup changes and the result can be heard on their new EP "The Wrath".

With only a very short intro, "Diss" comes in right away with some good old heavy fist pumping thrash. A swirl of upbeat double kick, snare and chugging envelopes around deep growls until the next section. This would last for about 10 seconds before returning to the previous riff, which is the foundation that this track is built on. "Messianic" starts off very similar to the previous tracks but quickly changes things up with a chorus surrounding a very nice melodic guitar riff. The song is still very much in the thrash camp but Shuaben also treats us to a dark sounding guitar solo in the minor key which came as a pleasant surprise. On the downside, the leads sound thin at times with Edu's vocals sometimes drowning them out. The final track on the album "Dawn of Deception" is just as short as the rest of the songs, coming in at just under 5 minutes. That being said, it still seems there was more effort put into this song with a lot of the same chugging thrash riffs, but this time harmonized between two guitars. Time changes are more abundant, the vocals sound smoother and overall just sounds less repetitive than the rest of the album. The guitar solo is also the only one that truly impressed me with much more technicality than the rest. The album then quickly comes to an end through a melodic fadeout that never loses momentum.

It is hard to say if the production is what holds the band back. Regardless, there is something that is just undeniably raw about their sound but whether or not that is a good thing is subjective. There are a lot of similarities to early LAMB OF GOD and ARCH ENEMY (especially the latter) which leaves the impression THE HOLE has a lot of potential. It will be interesting to hear what the final product will sound like on their next full length album.