Omega, but not Alpha.

"Something off the peg sir? Come with me. Oh, sir does look a treat in that. This is a thick weave sir, heavy on the shoulders, a little light around the crotch. Well yes, it is like a lot of others out there, but what do you expect at that price?"

A little more, actually. A little more. These Glaswegians have only been around since 2011 and are now dropping their full debut. They recorded it in a secluded studio overlooking Loch Fyne; something which has no bearing on this music at all. This does what we expect, the band look like BLS but come off like modern Metal whiners; although they have staccato moments in 'Act Of Defiance' and low slung activity, the balladic rocking of 'Way Back Home' has little to recommend it and 'Lost' even tries to scare us, all downbeat riffs and atonal moments - as frightening as Alan Carr in a sweet shop.

'Follow Where I Go' has that anguish, that plaintive appeal, which palls by the time the simple piano and acoustic join us and 'What Do We Die For' grooves from beginning to end, reliant on a sharp backline to keep it in shape, 'Wolf Bitch' (Andrea Dworkin won't have written that one...) repeats the trick, but turns it up, a chunky riff deserving lots of attention and a very melodic chorus demanding even more.

That's all, really. This is all stuff we've heard before. In a way we've heard before. By a band we'll think we've heard before. Safety has a lot to recommend it, comfort zones are often great, in Metal they should be challenged; here they are jealously guarded. Hug the charts boys, but leave us out of it. Omega, but not Alpha.

Steve Swift