Cauldron

Best known for fronting "are they sincere or are they hilarious?” early ’80s NWOBHM enthusiasts Goat Horn, singer/bassist Jason Decay eliminates the query with his latest power trio, Cauldron, and these four ripping songs. Into The Cauldron finds Decay and crew — guitarist Ian Killpatrick and drummer Al Chambers — stepping forward in the world of metal by half a decade, intensifying their fury and attack with astronomical results. Darker, they come closer to the gloominess and rock-influenced drive of Venom and Slayer while still retaining the airy production values and shit-hot solos that exemplified their beloved Banzai Records influences. Though sadly short, the anthemic riffing that propels "The Striker Strikes” and the title track ensure that this thunderous metal blazes like a blitzkrieg. Even Decay’s occasionally misguided vocal delivery — the Tom Araya-esque falsetto wails are questionable, although to his credit, he dubs them "untuned” — feels apt and well suited to the fiery, demonic rage within.