Groove/thrash metal band MÜTHERLOAD deliver a crushing and aggressive sound with their debut EP "Ü". I knew I would like this EP as soon as "Insect" started playing. First off, it was heavy with punishing drums and riffs. I was a fan of the vocals immediately too. One of the lyrics caught my attention, too: "We deserve nothing, cause nothing's been done/Over-privileged insects who burned out the sun/Of all the worlds, we've been given this one." I love an album that can offer good social commentary with metaphors and great imagery. True to the groove metal genre, the beginning of "The Visitor" sounds exactly like what a LAMB OF GOD song would sound like. You can definitely tell where the band's influences lie from the vocals to the guitars to the drums. I think they do the genre justice with this song and album. The ending of the song speaks a lot to what the overall message the band tries to send with this EP is - "Yeah right, just sheep/Yeah right, lost sheep." They point out a lot of social issues throughout their lyrics.

The fourth song "Iniquity" is a great song, as well. I really liked the vocal echo effect at about 1:10 and I thought the screams in it were superb. I think this one is very catchy and has some of the best drums and guitars - the solo is awesome. "Thaügüst" is just under two minutes of mainly soft, intricate guitar riffs, basically one long solo. And although it's good guitar playing I'm not really sure what it's purpose is on the EP other than to show talent. It does transition nicely into the final song, but I'm not quite sure why it is its own song. I feel the same about the title track "Ü," which is just 44 seconds of a sound bite with some quiet guitars behind it.

"Lamia" goes back into the heavy groovy sound enjoyed throughout the EP. The song is great, but the thing that bothered me is the weird, deep clean singing. I just didn't like the sound of it and didn't think it fit. At the risk of sounding like some serial killer psycho, the screams are much preferred. Overall, I think MÜTHERLOAD killed it with their first release and I hope to see them continue on this path and develop their sound.