VISION MASTER from the United States was formed back in 2019. They are featuring Dan Munro (guitar and vocals) and Reuben Storey (drums and bass), formerly of the Death Metal act FUNEROT. VISION MASTER pays homage to weird, wild Heavy Metal from the ’80s when strange things were tried and their debut full-length “Sceptre” demonstrated that with full force. Taking the queues from their debut EP “Orb” in 2021, the basic sound is traditional Heavy Metal which is amped up with thrashy riffing and twisted around by Punk energy. And as soon as it gets blasted from the speakers, you will be greeted with intense Heavy Metal that will immediately and deeply appeal to the part of any soul that worships MANILLA ROAD, THE LORD WEIRD SLOUGH FEG, MERCYFUL FATE and late ’80s VOIVOD. ‘Wolves In The Shadows’ offers sinister Heavy Metal but quickly turns into borderline Thrash with the hefty drums, although it remains an infectious and above all a quality track. But then ‘Wet Net’ hits you in the face with its wild mix of old Punk, Speed Metal and damned riffs. The contrast to the opener could hardly be greater and Dan Munro’s very nasal vocal performance, sometimes delivered in a spoken word style, will remain in your memory for long. On the one hand, there are hectic pieces that range between Speed and Black Thrash Metal like ‘Gossamer Sky’, ‘Knife In A Velvet Glove’ and the completely crazy ‘Arc Terminal X’. In contrast, there are the doomy ‘Walls Of Bone’, the epic anthem ‘Beyond’ and the driving ‘Thin Veil’, which is more twisted and will appeal to fans of weird epics like THE LORD WEIRD SLOUGH FEG and BROCAS HELM. Lyrically they all tell stories of strange realms and beings, dark uncertain places, stories of glory and tragedy. The raw, sometimes rumbling lo-fi production also helps to retain the atmosphere such record demands. The album’s cover art reinforced the idea of VISION MASTER’s committed approach to creating outstanding Heavy Metal that can transport minds back to the glory days and will certainly lure any followers for many spins. Find out more about the band and record label at https://visionmaster.bandcamp.com or www.facebook.com/gatesofhellrecords