There’s a reason sharks haven’t evolved for millions of years. It’s because they don’t need to – their efficiency as a streamlined killing machine needs no augmentation. The same might be said for Malevolence. They’ve been doling out sonic savagery for 15 years without restraint or compromise – cowed by nothing, not even the best efforts of The National Trust.
They’re similarly unremitting on Where Only The Truth Is Spoken, their fourth album, despite these days plying their craft in a more prestigious studio (Dave Grohl’s Studio 606) and with a more acclaimed producer (GRAMMY winner Josh Wilbur). But unlike the shark, here Malevolence have emerged bigger, harder, with more teeth, bigger muscles, and an even greater ability to bite anything in front of them in half.
It’s heartening that bands operating on their own terrifying terms are now being rewarded for their toil. Admittedly, this only happens when the records you continue to make are top tier. Where Only The Truth Is Spoken is exactly the one they needed to make after 2022’s Malicious Intent put the Sheffield sluggers within spitting distance of British heavy metal’s upper echelons. Some have previously fumbled such an opportunity, but this is Malevolence we’re talking about – they drop bangers, not the ball.
From the moment opener Blood From The Leach announces itself, a tangled assault of strafing guitars and concussive snare, you know you’re in safe hands. Well, perhaps not safe, because they’ll kick the shit out of your ears, but certainly assured, confident, expert.