CHAINS OVER RAZORS emerged from the ashes of VAPOR BROTHERS and BENEATHME. This is their debut album and was recorded with the iconic Carmine Appice behind the boards. It is a combative heavy metal album that sounds like a band ready to conquer the world one blown ear drum at a time. First single "Damnation" is a perfect summation of the band's strengths. It spews forth with righteous anger at the abandonment of American veterans injured in combat. The band is able to create a visceral, solid slab of SEPULTURA-esque heavy riffing and crushing drums. Singer Franco "V" Rock adeptly shifts between gruff metal and smoother melodic singing with ease. This shift in dynamics really make the songs stand out and marks the band out as being something a bit special. Make no mistake, this is a heavy band but they know how to write a catchy chorus. "2020 (Silence Of The Moonlight)" is reminiscent of THERAPY and their ability to write focused melodies. There is even a trace of Andy Cairns particular inflections as well as his ability to write societal commentary imbued with emotional intensity.

"Devils Eyes" takes the intensity and thrash of MEGADETH and splices it with some MINISTRY style nihilism. The result is a solid wall of fury; a song that will give you the urge to smash random pieces of furniture. The band would be astonishingly loud for a nine piece let alone a three piece. Somehow, they manage to balance the brutally loud guitar with the pummelling drums. No easy feat. "Subtle Worlds" seems like a much more personal song with lyrics that deal with isolation and depression. It's a sombre song with industrial atmospherics that adds real substance to the album as a whole. Their ear for bludgeoning riffs and tight song structures is reminiscent of early 90s Alt-rock heroes HELMET. They have a similarly hostile and confrontational approach but understand when it is necessary to reign it in for the benefit of the song such as on the seismic "Live It Loud". Elsewhere there are gargantuan riffs that metal pioneers MACHINE HEAD would be proud of such as on "Promises Of War". Their ability to pull on the heartstrings is also evident on "Letters of Twelve". It soars on a wave of distorted guitars. It's an earnest mid-tempo closer that ends the album on a reflective note. The production from Carmine Appice is, as one would suspect, excellent. He manages to create a mammoth, full sound that belies the fact that the album was created by only three people. This is an album brimming with adrenaline and energy. It is an album from a hungry band who are looking to take the world on, on their terms.