ERA is an Oswego, New York based band that put together one killer 4 song EP titled 'The Beyond Killer'. They come right out of the gate with "Warmonger" that screams, rocks, shocks, is melodic in parts, and displays talents that need to be seen more often in the Syracuse area clubs. I was impressed at the bands tempo changes and certain sections that have a 'groove' to them, hard to do with metal. In fact, they reminded me of one of my favorite metal bands immediately, SHADOWS FALL and I hit YouTube to crank "What Drives The Weak" and there it was, that sound and vibe. Awesome.

I use comparisons for your benefit good readers, make no mistake these guys rock hard and they have their own brand and style. I could easily have said KILLSWITCH ENGAGE / FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH but all of that is to give you an idea.

"Dark Matter" is the EPs second offering and it comes at you like an M1 tank, at this point I wish I had huge speakers to feel it crunch my chest as the bolo punches of sound crashed into me. The vocals are insane in how they easily transition from an aggression, to a scream, to a growl, to singing. "The Beyond Killer" is next up and starts out with a cool riff with a touch of phaser effect I believe but builds nicely into an angry scream that crescendo and mellows just a bit for some melodic singing before slamming back into 4^th gear. Last, and by no means least is "Sunken Teeth". It comes at you with some effects followed by a nice steady riff that leads into an up-tempo rush of power yet again. In the middle there is what sound like a recording at a bar or somewhere that really throws you off and they hit you right back in the jaw before you figure out what happened.

These guys have an EP that stands up to anyone and leaves this writer wanting more. They are SAMMY nomination worthy easily and both Metal nominees are worth stage time in this writer's opinion.

Go check them out now m/