Māori metalheads Alien Weaponry hit the metal scene by storm a few years ago. The sight of three extremely young musicians combining groove metal with their traditional culture delighted audiences around the world and led to big tours with the likes of Slayer, Anthrax and Black Label Society. The band’s 2018 album ‘Tu’ was a solid debut, and now they are back in the spotlight with new album ‘Tangaroa’. The eyes of the metal world are back on these New Zealander upstarts.
Three years after their debut, their signature sound is still thrilling. That combination of the traditional sounds and Gojira-inspired metal still sounds as impressive and fresh as ever, and the strongest parts on ‘Tangaroa’ can be found when the trio bring in those Māori influences, particularly when singing in the Te Teo Māori language and playing traditional taonga puoro instruments.
Their dedication to tradition makes for genuinely brilliant moments. Album opener ‘Titokowaru’ starts with Māori rowing chants, before expanding into a huge sounding groove metal song that’s followed by one of the highlights of the record, ‘Hatupatu’, which tells the tale of lead singer Lewis de Jong’s ancestor facing off against a witch. It has to be the most metal concept behind a heavy song this year, and backs up that idea with huge riffs.
Alien Weaponry are clearly a band with a lot to say. Tracks across ‘Tangaroa’ touch on subjects like colonialism (with the Queen even sampled in the huge ‘Ahi Kā’), global politics, climate change and environmentalism. Their songwriting is remarkably mature for a band made up of two 21-year-olds and a 19-year-old, and the songs that deal with these deep subjects are easily the highlights of the record – especially when combined with their indigenous-influenced metal.
This is bread and butter for Alien Weaponry. They have a signature sound – and they’re very good at it – but they have also made a concerted effort to try and expand their horizons on their second record, with largely mixed results. The nu-metal inspired title track is probably where that experimentalism is most effective, using both languages, clean and harsh vocals and big chugging riffs.
Elsewhere, however, the attempts at something new fall short. Singer De Jong tries to get introspective in some of the more straight ahead metal tracks, and they are the weakest parts of the record. The angst-ridden ‘Unforgiving’ brings the album to standstill halfway through, largely failing at being the big emotional moment of the record it is trying to be. Other songs like ‘Blinded’, ‘Dad’ and the disappointing album closer ‘Down the Rabbit Hole’ fall flat in similar ways.
‘Tangaroa’ is a relatively lengthy record, coming in at just under an hour, but at times it feels much longer. There is a lot of fat that could easily be cut here and while experimenting and stepping out of your comfort zones are usually things to be applauded in a band, on ‘Tangaroa’ Alien Weaponry are clearly strongest when they stick to what they do best.
But when Alien Weaponry do play to their strengths, it is genuinely thrilling. These young musicians have the ability to create interesting, unique and enjoyable music – something that is rare in modern metal. And while the record is let down by the weaker moments, there are enough highs to be excited at the thought of what Alien Weaponry will do next.
JAMES LILLYWHITE