Formed in 2002, Drugs Of Faith quickly released several demos and a song on a Terrorizer Magazine compilation CD before signing with Selfmadegod Records who released their eponymous debut album in 2005, which took them to Europe for their first tour with Blood I Bleed. They released their second album, ‘Corroded’, in 2011 but although there have been a few EPs since then it is only now that they have returned with their third full-length (10 tracks, 21 minutes). They are a trio comprising Richard Johnson (Enemy Soil, Agoraphobic Nosebleed), bassist Ivan Khilko (Immanent Voiceless), and drummer Ethan Griffiths (Embra), and when I saw Johnson’s name I knew I had to hear this as he has been the voice of Agoraphobic Nosebleed and his first album with them was the mighty ‘Frozen Corpse Stuffed With Drugs’, an album I still play at least monthly. He is grind royalty, and has brought in his mate J.R. Hayes (Pig Destroyer, Enemy Soil) to provide lyrics to “Desert War Eternal”, while this set also includes a cover of “Essential”, originally by defunct European band DrDoom (pre- Teethgrinder), who they played shows with while touring Europe years ago.
One song does manage to stretch itself all the way to three minutes, but only the opener is less than one minute, so this is quite a workout for these guys. Also, while grind is very much at the heart of all they do, this is actually an incredibly varied album although there is plenty on here (not just the vocals) which do make me think of AN. We move into noise at times, there are different time signatures and styles, but it is always incredibly heavy, with plenty of polish and forethought behind the aggression. This is something which fans of the more brutal forms of metal and grind will find plenty to enjoy, and hopefully it will not take so long for the next full-length release. This will be very much of interest to those who like Enemy Soil, Benümb, Man Is The Bastard, Black Army Jacket, Cripple Bastards, Yautja, Neuropathia, Blood Duster.
Rating: 8/10
Links:
https://www.facebook.com/drugsoffaith
https://selfmadegod.com/