Review by Felix on March 13, 2020.

Some people say that Tank only worked with the Brabbs / Brabbs / Ward line-up and these dudes usually have a tendency to punk music. Their point of view is comprehensible, because the first configuration of Tank spread a snotty, punk-compatible charm. Straight torpedoes like 'Shellshock', 'Struck by Lightning' or 'Turn Your Head Around' emphasized the band’s affinity for the genre of the Sex Pistols, The Ramones or The Exploited. At the same time, these hammers paved the way for the silently growing speed / thrash scene. Well, back in 1982, only a few guys really cared about the exact description of the trio’s style and maybe we should get back to this kind of cool serenity. What we know for sure is that Filth Hounds of Hades sounds raw, rebellious and – despite its anti-establishment attitude – pretty varied. 'T.W.D.A.M.O.', for example, has not much in common with untamed energy, but it adds another interesting flavour to the album. It’s almost thoughtful approach and the casual riffing do not shape another album highlight, but it cannot be denied that the song scores with individuality and an attractive form of unintended catchiness.

Seen from today’s perspective, the music does not reach highest levels of excitement. I still wonder why some Danish thrashers chose the second part of the title of 'Heavy Artillery' for their band name. The ordinary song with an ordinary chorus and ordinary verses does not suck, but it also fails to leave a long-lasting impression. But good news (or is it rather bad news?), it is a real jewel as long as we compare it with 'Who Needs Love Songs'. Despite its title, this is no ballad, but the terrible guitar lines drive the song directly into the ground. However, the vast majority of the conventionally designed pieces show an above-average degree of musical maturity. It does not express itself in technical gimmicks, but in a sharp eye for essentials. It must be remembered that Tank had already accompanied Motörhead on a tour through Europe before they released their debut – and they had not forgotten this experience when entering the studio. The songs never get fat and the production of Fast Eddie Clark (R.I.P.) underlines the reduced yet effective approach. By the way, I am speaking of a production that still sounds fresh, even though it does not deny its age. This may sound pretty weird – but all people who still feel the importance of the entire decade of the eighties every now and then will hopefully know what I want to say.

The slightly repetitive and strangely titled '(He Fell in Love with a) Stormtrooper' brings the album to a solid end. Tank possessed this authentic f**k-you-mentality, but their pure musical offering did not indicate that we were listening to the art of a revolutionary cell. Anyway, Filth Hounds of Hades initiated a career with many ups and downs and today we have two Tanks… but we also had two Germanys for more than 40 years and still we have two Koreas, so what? And it is true, even two Tanks have never published a real masterpiece, but the original Tank (not only the first line-up) possessed a lot of personality and their albums have been really relevant for the scene, especially but not only in view of their non-musical features.

Rating: 7.7 out of 10

Review by Nathan on April 6, 2020.

This project has an intriguing origin - it got me to check it out, anyways. The guitarist/vocalist from the Berzerker and the drummer from Psycroptic met up, apparently fed up with the strictness and professionalism of their main projects, and quickly put together a project meant to sound like slobbering cavemen trying their hand at death metal. This entire album was allegedly written and recorded in a matter of weeks, a fun little way for two well-known Australian bands to pair up, blow off some steam and bring their poise and pedigree to a more straightforward, bludgeoning version of the music they’re known to make. At the very least, it’s a good teaser for all the Berzerker diehards who are eagerly anticipating their new album.

Right away, Werewolves have some immediate differences from their parent projects that are brought about by the supergroup-type collaboration. The more organic feel that Dave Haley brings to the rhythm section means this is going to immediately lack the same sort of suffocating intensity possessed The Berzerker, while the hasty, caution-to-the-wind approach to the songwriting gives this, by intent, far less nuance and variety than you find in a Psycroptic album. The end result comes out as a simple, speedy album that relies on two to three main riffs to drive the songs, with a surprisingly melodic touch that wasn’t entirely absent from The Berzerker but seems to be more frequent on The Dead Are Screaming. 'No More Heroes', 'Gnaw Their Bones', and 'Dogknotted' all come right out of the gate with this same sort of blisteringly fast, yet unusually slick sort of riffing that would have been hard to pull off if it wasn’t being attempted by pioneers in Australian extreme music. Upon first listen, that’s what makes this sound really impressive - Werewolves immediately have a personality, sound furious and overwhelming (with a little bit of catchiness to boot) - and it doesn’t even sound like they’re trying that hard.

The latter half of that previous sentence, however, ends up being cause for concern. While the spirit of Werewolves is to do things really quickly without thinking, I do think that a little bit more time spent focusing these songs would have made The Dead Are Screaming much more potent. It’s not necessarily that I think these songs should have been more varied, far from it - if anything, I want the monstrous, hyperdrive guitars and blasting to go on more often. Whereas the better Berzerker albums hit you with speed from all sorts of different angles, Werewolves break up the manic pounding with mid-paced, bridge-building riffs that, quite frankly, don’t do shit. When this thing is hammering at anything but full force, it might as well not even be on at all, and it’s during these moments that the album sounds thrown together in a not good way. The first couple tracks up to about 'Dogknotted' hold your attention pretty well, with the slow section in that song at least rewarding you for sitting through it with a cool riff at the end, but after that the amount of filler in the tracks starts to increase and the album starts to feel like it’s pulling the same tricks over and over again. Occasionally a track is made memorable by a catchy riff or vocal line (the first and last tracks in particular have some good verses). However, with nine tracks and none being over five minutes, there’s not a lot of room for curveballs.

Maybe I’m just being too cerebral in my analysis of this album - after all, it is meant to be a meat-headed affair. That being said, the clear production and clinical precision that you’d expect out of professionals who have been playing for decades also causes The Dead Are Screaming to be too well-composed for its own good. If you really want to get that caveman part of my brain going, do some weird thumping that only kind of makes sense, not surgically tight blastbeats and fast d-beats. The way I see it, this has a couple of interesting tracks that pique my interest for the next album, but they’re either going to have to utilize the full range of their skills and make something truly unhinged and versatile, or fully surrender to the filthy caveman vibe and throw in some "Mental Funeral" type songwriting twists - maybe even "unlearn" your instruments a la Fenriz with drumming or something. Otherwise, this risks being cast aside as a slightly more accessible B-grade Berzerker offshoot, with more appeal being based on the musicians behind the product over the actual end result. The de-evolution has started a bit, sure, but I think they need more time to further regress.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10