ZULU are a 5-piece punk band from London. They released their debut cassette “Way of the Zulu” from Stroll On Records early in March. The material has received plenty of praise, resulting in a quick sell out of the cassette.
The more and more you listen, it’s really no surprise that Zulu have gotten this much attention. To keep it simple, this is simply an awesome release – they spare us of any unnecessary bullshit, and from then on out continue to beat our faces into a bloody pulp with their dire strand of punk rock which seems to pull from an array of influences. Songs feature sharp and edgy guitars drenched in a bloody rage, crashing on through without any remorse whatsoever for the destruction that is left in their wake. Take cassette highlight “Sistine Chapel” for example, which sets us off with a driving, pulsing guitar that will only turn around to explode in our faces. Then lead singer Luke Brennan guides us through the foreboding verse, crafting up witty rhymes in his oddly satisfying, neanderthal-like slur. As he howls in anguish you can’t help but listen to his bold words – his voice stands out so prominently against the music.
Take another track like “The Book” for further evidence. Brennan and the gang pummel our ears with a stomping hook that repeats many times throughout the track, helping once again to solidify their hard-rocking and intimidating doom-punk sound – listen for the pounding tom-toms which is surely confirmation of this. Toward the end the guitars flesh out with some nasty soloing, creating an unsettling and noisy finale to end the track on. The same goes for the majority of these tracks, like “Bloody & Rare” which terrorizes us with ravaging, tormenting guitars that just won’t take no for an answer. Another track like “We’re Watching You” is a testament of this relentless attitude, as they constantly remind us that we’re being watched amongst the catastrophic guitar soloing and cymbal smashing. There’s evidence to support these claims all over the cassette, whether it’s catchy vocal hooks of “Zombie” or the raging punk onslaught of “Mir Kinder”.
As you should probably gather, this release is not to be missed. Check out these tracks below or you will be sorry.
Sistine Chapel –
The Book –
Mir Kinder –
My Rating: SS
Genre/ Tags: Punk, Noise Rock
Way of the Zulu CS:
1.) Do You Recognise
2.) Sistine Chapel
3.) Now That We Are Here
4.) Bloody & Rare
5.) The Book
6.) We’re Watching You
7.) Incarcerated for Thrills
8.) Wir Kinder
9.) Zombie
BUY the digitals from Stroll On Records – the cassettes are sold out !
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