Cool as...
We've waited a long time for this! Max Raptor's full length follow up to the quite brilliant Portraits comes in the form of Mother's Ruin and you'll be pleased to know that it doesn't disappoint! The boys from Burton burst onto the scene a few years ago and have delivered nothing but boundless energy, huge choruses and massive riffs ever since. Naturally there's always a danger that having made such an impact initially, that anything that followed wouldn't quite live up to their own high standards. I'll admit that the first playback of Mother's Ruin didn't grab me quite as much as Portraits did but it grew on me as fast as a flesh eating disease!
They obviously wanted to make an immediate impact with the first track Back of a Barrel Wave and it certainly does that with a huge dirty riff that gets heads nodding right from the off. It's not long before the first big chorus of the album makes an appearance and it sets the tone for the whole record. It's something of a trademark for Max Raptor and quite how they keep coming up with them is a mystery but they're all the better for it!
Taming of the Shrewd is a killer track with a rapid fire guitar riff and another great sing along chorus. It's followed by England Breathes, which was previewed (with accompanying video) prior to the album release and there's really no let up so far. As with Portraits every single song would make a fine single in it's own right so aside from the actual single Breakers, Grace and Favours and Evangeline easily stand up against it. The only surprise of the album comes with Heavy Hearts, which is a much slower ballad styled song. It has something of a feel of Frank Turner about it and it proves that Max Raptor aren't just a one trick pony. It's a damn good song and if they were ever inclined to make an assault on the mainstream they could do a lot worse than to push this as a single.
It's back up to full speed straight after that however with Must Work Harder and title track Mother's Ruin and by this point you're probably completely hooked. Pioneers rounds things off in traditional style with yet another big chorus and I guarantee you'll be reaching straight for the replay button. This has 'album of the year' all over it, it really is that good! A fantastic follow up that just smacks you round the head from start to finish. Mother's Ruin has the perfect blend of melody, speed, power and riffs and if they can top this on the next outing then they'll have made something truly stunning!