Hailing from Flagstaff, Swamp Wolf delivers one hell of a potent composition on "The Brilliance of a Feral Mind". Three parts venom and one part bile, these guys are adept practitioners in the art of genre bending. Call it blackened thrash and hardcore or any other clever conjunction of titles, the only thing that matters is whether the material is good or not. In the matter of Swamp Wolf, the material is not only good, it is great.
Across just over thirty minutes of music, Swamp Wolf grinds, gallops, and staggers in fits of doom much like a half starved and feral animal. The energy of the performance is the perhaps the greatest feature of this record. Pure and furious aggression bleeds from the speakers from beginning to end, there are no mid album blues on "The Brilliance of a Feral Mind". This focused approach is something a lot of bands in the modern era of heavy music lack or are only partially capable of pulling off on their albums. Swamp Wolf embraces chaos and makes it work so well that while listening to this record one might be reminded of the energy of early Slayer records or the punk assault of Discharge.
Rather than focus on individual tracks, it is better to take this album in as an entire listening experience. The songs flow together and form a cohesive body of work that can be enjoyed without hitting a skip or repeat button. Swamp Wolf not only knows how to write riffs, they also clearly know how to concoct the right glue of arrangements and dynamics that hold the whole thing together. The well blended stylistic changes and multiple vocals are just further icing on the cake.
Fans of extreme music, take note of this album. Swamp Wolf does indeed have what it takes , which is proved over and over again with the hammer blow to the forehead that is "The Brilliance of a Feral Mind". They have crafted a perfect and heavy monster that crushes the sonic landscape with an aggression that will leave a lasting mark on the Arizona heavy music scene.
Final Score: 9/10
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