Review by Carl on March 23, 2021.

You gotta hand it to Indemnity, cramming some 30 years of thrash and hardcore into a 21 minute album, that's no mean feat.

To describe it in short: Indemnity are a thrash metal band with a heavy influence of both old school and newer school hardcore punk, but to put it like that, one would sell the band short. While the vocals remind me of mid to late 90's hardcore/metal acts like Pro-Pain or Skinlab (you could basically fill in any post 1994 hardcore/thrash band here), their music is somewhat harder to define. It is not exactly your basic Slayer, Exodus or Kreator copy band, although these influences certainly show up throughout, but the band mix in different styles into the thrash metal frame of their music. There's crust and old school hardcore punk, but also Bay Area thrash, New York hardcore, crossover and even some 90's groove thrash, it all makes an appearance.

Throughout the whole album I hear bands like M.O.D., Sacred Reich, Vio-lence, Backfire!, Torque, 25 ta Life, early Slayer, Minor Threat, ... and those are just the ones that come to mind right now! The band has dropped it all into a blender and made their own, original cocktail of different metal and hardcore styles, without it coming across as forced. It has groovy mid tempo parts, thrashing polka beats, gang vocals, blast beats, blazing guitar leads, d-beats, ... Within the space of one song the band can seamlessly switch from Exodus style thrash riffing to blistering hardcore punk like Discharge and back again on the turn of a dime, without it becoming a mess. And it must be noted that even with all those different influences, this albums remains consistent throughout. Perhaps not all that they put in here is to my personal liking, but the fact is that there aren't a lot of bands that can give the thrash genre a spin of their own, but Indemnity does it to good effect.

This is by far one of the most varied thrash albums I have ever heard, and with it's excellent production and punkish energy it doesn't look like it's going to get boring anytime soon. There's just so much happening here it takes some time to let it all sink in, but it sure is worth the effort. I certainly appreciate their eclectic approach to the thrash genre, though I can also imagine that the usual patch-jacket crowd might have some trouble with Indemnity, because they have a lot more to offer than your basic Exodus clone band. Give them a chance, I'd say, they totally deserve it.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Review by Alex on September 23, 2020.

Sandbreaker impressed lots of folks with their self titled debut EP in 2019, it displayed the band's intent in making a slightly loose form of stoner doom with death metal influences. Majority of that EP walked a fairly straight line in terms of death/doom even though the stoner metal mannerisms would appear frequently. In 2020 however, they have managed to release a matured full-length amidst the shitstorm of things, titled Worm Master. This album came as a surprise to me, I didn't think the Polish ploughers would have a crop ready for us so soon, however, it's here and damn is it one tasty reap.

Sandbreaker was a very well written and assembled album, Worm Master is all that Sandbreaker was and more. Firstly it seems their sound has gotten even heavier than before hence the addition of the new guitarist to the lineup. New-comer Krzysztof Całka along with Bartłomiej Czech arrive as ready and more than competent craftsmen for the job at hand. Thus said, they not only deliver on what's expected of them, but they add a more definite layer of musicianship. As time would pass-by with the opening song 'Upside Down World' ideally setting the stage, you'd begin to notice there's much more of an adventurous overtone working. The guitars are spacy and sound more atmospheric than on their debut EP. This bit of growth is good to see as it shows that Sandbreaker are definitely not afraid to progress respectfully with their sound. This element goes well with the bouldering basslines of Arkadiusz Dzierżawa and the monstrous growls and ominous thumps of Mirosław Cichy. Altogether creating a truly cohesive bit of music that envelops you slowly as you listen to tracks like the terrifying 'Navigator Lost' and 'Aqua Karma'. Also its great to hear those sprawling, deserted rock and roll guitar solos laid-down, they expand the feel of the tunes and really add to the experience of listening to Worm Master.

I can hear a bit of Ahab and Black Hole (Italy) particularly in the drumming, riffing and placement of those abyss-dwelling vocals on songs such as 'Golden Path (Metamorphosis)' and self titled track 'Worm Master' though being shy of deep melody. Thus, if Sandbreaker should double-down on the melody I think they would be even more effective as a unit playing stoner/death/doom. The production brings together all of the components of their atmospheric doomed out stoner death metal with nothing appearing to be too dominant. The best moments are made noticeable, which I would say are the swelling, sloth-like guitar solos and again the vocal malevolence of Doombardier. The artwork matches what I hear on the record and elevates the obscurity of where Sandbreaker as a band may be heading next as it appears to be drawn from the similar artistic concept behind their debut EP.

I hope Sandbreaker are able to further explore and take their music to greater heights with each following release. As for now I can honestly say that Worm Master is a commendable bit of growth demonstrated by the band, hopefully to continue their journey.

Rating: 8.2 out of 10