Corby lads Raging Speedhorn were everywhere when I was first getting into heavy music. They racked up airplay and magazine inches, and were constantly touring. At the time I feel like perhaps I was too young to appreciate them, as they were a little too heavy for me. By the time my tastes had caught up, the band was gone.
Coming back in 2014 like a bolt out the blue, it felt like they had never left. The 6 year passage of time seemed to have only made them angrier though. Night Wolf, their latest album is the band’s third since they have been back and dare I say it…the most fun? now before you start worrying, that trademark Speedhorn ferocity is still here and in spades.
Time has done nothing to quell the band’s fury, let’s make that clear. Opener Blood Red Sky sets things off on the right path. All serrated riffs and snarl, it ram raids the listener from the get go. Buzz Killa is more anthemic and vibey than it has any right to be. The Blood Code then is the total opposite, a doomy treacle thick dirgy head pummeler. Every Night’s Alright For Fighting comes in swinging harder than the Hulk’s testicles. It’s a lairy, brash and unashamedly catchy number that emphasises the fun element previously mentioned.
The album’s title track has Down written all over it. Alongsie DOA they’re both gigantic slabs of melodic sludge that showcase Raging Speedhorn’s renewed sense of melody melded with aggression.Comin’ In Hard is a ballsy, big riffing rock & roll banger that swaggers about like a Guy Ritchie character and hits twice as hard.
Album closer Dead Reckoning carries the album out on a colossal riff that will pulses pounding and ears ringing. Taking the listener out in as furious fashion as the album brought them in.
Night Wolf is a lean, mean vibe filled album full of stupidly big riffs, head caving brutality and copious amounts of cock sure confidence. Raging Speedhorn have played a blinder here, creating an album that is worthy of their legacy, but highlights how much fun they are having being back in the mix again.
Night Wolf is out on March 7th, 2025 via Spinefarm/UMG.
