DYING VICTIMS PRODUCTIONS is proud to present a brand-new EP from Sweden’s ARMORY, Black Star, on 7” vinyl format. The EP will be a co-release with JAWBREAKER RECORDS.
Out of the deep void in the far corners of the universe, the entity known as ARMORY was born in the year 2012 C.E. With the guiding light of the fiery stars Judas Priest, Agent Steel, and Slayer, ARMORY set out on a cosmic path delivering hyper-speed metal to every planet, system, and galaxy in their path. Their two first albums, World Peace… Cosmic War (2016) and The Search (2018), were released via High Roller Records, garnering ever greater reviews.
Under the new flag of DYING VICTIMS, ARMORY’s third album, Mercurion, was unleashed during the spring of 2022 and followed by a European tour in 2023. This further cemented that ARMORY are a force to be reckoned with on the intergalactic battleground.
ARMORY’s upcoming operations are set in motion, and the next chapter starts with the deployment of the two-song EP Black Star in February 2025 C.E. Featuring two brand-new and exclusive songs – the title track on side A, and “Solar Winds“ on side B – ARMORY deliver a rapid barrage of hyper-speed metal with influences and feelings from the dark, cold void that engulfs us all. It’s immediately, recognizably ARMORY, but this EP displays with breathless brevity that the band are handily transcending their not-inconsiderable past and setting the cosmic stage for glory of a most universal nature.
Review
“ARMORY, Hyperspeed Metal from Gothenburg, Earth since 2012” that’s how the Swedish space metallers like to present themselves in public and they form part of that solid constellation of bands I discovered totally by chance seeing them on stage. By far the name wasn’t alien to me, however, for one reason on another failed to pay proper attention to the creative universe the guys navigate in. What they delivered live was like a strike of interstellar comet, making the choice of acquiring all them three previous releases a no brainer. The unique style, conceptually themed album and raw, primordial outburst of metal energy are indeed a rare finding, which I recommend for everybody to experience, if already hasn’t. “Black Star” EP comes at the right moment to hint us what’s flying our way and a proper starter to intrigue the taste of a forthcoming fourth record.
Тhe eponymous opener “Black Star” engages with a signature intro to throw us into an endless cosmic void, where our vessel of metal journey is a light reverberating guitar, gradually to grow into a solid speedy riff, an approach typical for ARMORY and heating up the audience on every metal show. Vocals are kicking in a balanced way, not dominating entirely the composition and as the song develops, they become more girthy, shifting things to the more thrashy spectrum of stylistic. Still, the instrumental part prevails, being both technical and catchy, keeping the overall feeling vibrant and definitely endorsing proper fist-pumps. Sudden breaks, lyrical accents and that fine tuned mini solo in the middle, that pops up at the closing part too – all these elements construct the metamorphic nature of this piece, classifying It for a top tier finder.
Second in place and closing this short release is “Solar Winds” that immediately blow us away with a drastically different sound and production here. I would reckon this was a much-desired effect from ARMORY to instill that old-school, kind of garage band type of experience, that we’ll find often in early DIY demo tapes. And it’s definitely a spot on, immediately making me qualify it as a really cool song. Before even reaching the middle, one could definitely state its quite different beast than “Black Star” that both almost don’t belong together, but hey, since when variety and alternative angle of creativity are a negative thing? If I have to put a label on that one, perhaps one of the best NWOTHM examples ever put out by the swedes and secretly aspire for their next album to have more of this wind of change. The chorus stands a is the ace in the deck, followed by a stretched portion of instrumental prowess, before the vox storm again. Perhaps the sounds would benefit from a little polishing or maybe not and keeping it raw will make it shine even brighter….
Conclusion
Two songs are equally enough and insufficient extract to analyze and produce grandiose general statements. ARMORY have a solid reputation to defend and by great amount that EP does the job, turning our eyeballs to the north awaiting what more shall come from this inexhaustible source of metal artistry. Put on the scale of balance, unquestionably “Solar Winds” is my cup of tea, however truly believe plenty of people will identify “Black Star” as their earworm of preference. My final unsolicited advice for the band would be to not delay much their future fully blown album and spare us from wondering which direction the Gothenburg quintet has chosen for their next celestial conquest.
TheNwothm Score: 8.5/10
Line-up:
G.Sundin – Guitars
A.Holmström – Drums
N.Ingelman – Guitars
P.Andersson – Vocals
J.Lundin – Bass
From Gothenburg, Sweden
Links
Bandcamp:https://armory417.bandcamp.com/music
Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/armoryofficial
Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/armorysweden/
Release date:
21st February 2025
Release info:
– black vinyl, comes with sticker
Pre-order:
http://www.dyingvictims.com
https://dyingvictimsproductions.bandcamp.com/
The Nwothm 
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