Ixone
And so it is that I once again find myself venturing into partially foreign musical territory. Not entirely unfamiliar, but just enough outside my usual comfort zone that I initially put off diving into this record—until my conscience kicked in and dragged me back. That brings us to Slaves of the Wolf, the latest album by American band Bear Mace.
To put it plainly, this is textbook old-school Death Metal. If you’ve ever wondered what a sonic hybrid of Morbid Angel and Bolt Thrower might sound like, congratulations—you’ve pretty much got the idea. This familiar formula is, surprisingly, what saves the album. Had it been another overproduced, hyper-clean modern Death Metal clone, I would’ve torn it apart by the second paragraph. But Bear Mace sticks to its crusty, pummelling guns and lands on my list of death metal bands worth paying attention to.
What makes Slaves of the Wolf stand out is simple: good songwriting. It clocks in at just over 33 minutes, but there’s not a second wasted. Every riff, drum fill, and growl feels purposeful. There are no meandering detours or filler tracks—it’s tight, direct, and deliberate. The band knows how to build tension and release without falling into monotony. There’s a healthy range of tempos and textures that give the album movement, but it never tries to be overly experimental. “The Iceman Cometh” is the best example of this—catchy, aggressive, rhythmically compelling, and capped off with a thrash-tinged solo that wouldn’t feel out of place on a Devian record.
Death Metal isn’t exactly known for creating deep atmospheres, and I doubt Bear Mace had any such intention, but Slaves of the Wolf ends up feeling genuinely unnerving at times. There’s a kind of simmering dread throughout the record that works in its favor. “Captured and Consumed,” for instance, comes at you with unsettling riffing and abrupt tempo changes that throw you off balance. It’s the kind of track that could make a late-night walk feel like a horror movie scene—assuming you’re into self-inflicted paranoia.
Now, sure, someone could argue this album is just one big cliché. My response? So what. Even if this is heavy on Bolt Thrower worship, it’s executed with conviction and clarity. Death Metal doesn’t need to be groundbreaking to be worthwhile, especially when it’s done this well. Slaves of the Wolf might not change the game, but it plays it like a pro. And while I may be a picky bastard, I’m a satisfied one this time around.
Label: Independent
Release date: 6 June, 2025
Website: https://castrator.bandcamp.com/music
Country: USA
Score: 4.5/5.0
Metal Eclipse Reviews 