J-Metal Reviews: ZADKIEL "HELL'S BOMBER"

By Badman

Muahahaha! You thought I was finished? You thought I would come up empty handed?! Hell no! Think again because I’m back in full force, balls-to-the-wall style! So strap on your seat belts and get ready to ride this train! We are on the highway to hell and ain’t no coming back! This week’s band is an obscure gem. A band I hadn’t come across before, let alone have heard of. Please welcome to the ironclad stage ZADKIEL!

There is very little information about ZADKIEL. They were a trio who started in 1986 hailing from Tokyo and only lasting for two years before hanging up the hat. The lineup consisted of Yuichi Kinoshita on drums, Joe Yoriki on guitars/vocals and Koh Morota aka Pirarucu from legendary progressive Japanese thrash band DOOM on bass. With such a short lived career, ZADKIEL made enough material that could be counted on one hand; Yes, one hand! Before the band split, their discography only totals to three releases: one single, one live video, and one EP...Yes, this week’s Metal review is on their single EP called "HELL'S BOMBER".

With a total of four tracks, "HELL'S BOMBER" runtime roughly totals eleven minutes and thirty seconds. I was quite abrasive to giving this EP a shot, but seeing how short it was I said, “Why the hell not. If it’s bad, I will only be losing a little over ten minutes of my life” ... Holy f**king balls I was not ready for what ZADKIEL had to offer! Their sound, although not original, BLEW ME THE HELL AWAY! Just imagine if Motorhead and Venom made a bastard devil child. This is what ZADKIEL sounds like! The energy is through the roof! The speed is unrelenting! Oh and the vocal delivery as evil as evil can be(for the time)! The best way I can describe Joe’s vocal style is if you put Lemmy’s gruffness mixed in with Cronos’s malicious snarls and execution. Despite Joe being on vocals and guitars, his rhythm section works enough for the songs and shines in a few songs where he is able to let out a few solos. Of the three musicians, Koh’s bass playing stands out the most! His tone is low and dirty but punches through each track like Mike Tyson’s fists. For any bassheads out there, there are some sweet licks that you will NOT miss! Due to being a trio and Joe manning guitar and vocals, Koh definitely does most of the heavy lifting in the stringed rhythm sections.

My verdict is this simple! ZADKIEL’s "HELL'S BOMBER" is a MUST LISTEN! For those who love Motorhead and Venom, you do not want to miss out on this EP. Trust me. This has to be my top 5 my favorite listens out of all the J-Metal reviews. Spotify has a remastered version of "HELL'S BOMBER" with an extra song (will be listed below). So get your asses up and take a goddamn listen! Your heads will be banging until they roll off your shoulders!  Check it out!

Standouts:
Miss Satan
Head River
Hell’s Bomber
No, It Isn’t
Y.K.M.(Spotify)

Spotify Link:
https://open.spotify.com/track/4oiduVVhkEzwPOmAdxb05w