Deströyer 666 - Bitter Scorn EP (2023)

Bitter Scorn is little more than a bite-sized after mint to the phenomenal Never Surrender record, Deströyer 666 riding high on another success, and I have to admit it delivers. Partly on the strength of the cover song; K.K. Warslut and friends do not mess around when they decide to include something like this, and whilst Dio's "I Speed at Night" is a much different pick than something like "Prometheus" from the Terror Abraxas EP, it's another awesome execution which fully translates the driving, simplistic heavy metal number into their more volatile, armored and aggressive style, which feels flush with the increased elements of speed and thrash metal that have dominated their last two albums, but have always been in the DNA to some degree.

The new original, the title track, is also pretty good, with a great chorus and a vocal break that reminds me of something Venom would have done in their heyday. Like a lot of their recent material, it's largely built upon a speed/heavy metal structure but then injected with some of the blackened thrash elements, and yet they just don't sound a lot like the myriad of other bands doing their style. Perhaps because they've built up such a unique foundation from which to approach it, or the way they produce the guitars, Deströyer 666 has been fairly original for some time. Now, this is a 7", it's limited, collectible, and there are those restraints, most people will have to check out the Dio cover (at least) online, but it's worth hearing, and "Bitter Scorn" itself I think is available on one of the deluxe editions of Never Surrender, where it's probably a better fit. So as an individual PRODUCT, this has limited appeal beyond collectors, but the tunes will please those into the last decade of Deströyer 666.

Verdict: Indifference [6/10]

https://www.destroyer666.uk/