31st March 2026

Review: “Exhumation Evilean” by Evilean

Brutally exhumed in MMXXVI in Sydney Australia, Evilean are a band who pay homage to the 90’s Death Metal sound while delivering lyrical narratives from a female perspective. Reversing the flow of traditional power dynamics, embracing chaos, annihilation and retribution in unflinching fashion, it is written on ancient scrolls that their purpose is to evoke the sound of Death Metal when it was dangerous, underground and unrelenting. The trio consist of bassist Jim Ramses (Chrysilia, Paralysis, Keepers of Jericho), drummer Robin Stone (Ashen Horde, Body Wall Defect, Chestcrush) alongside vocalist and guitarist Jojo Shaw and together they have pieced together five fresh cuts for our listening pleasure…

A playful take on nursery rhymes that takes a leaf out of the Butcher Babies book “Die Blind” serves as filthy introduction to the sound of Evilean that makes great use of the bands experienced rhythm section while cutting its own path through the urban jungle. Shaw uses a pair of distinctly different voiced on this one that leave her sounding almost unhinged, as if waiting for the those in white coats to bring her a straight jacket and the lyrical narrative goes a long way to fuel that aesthetic. Raw and unfiltered the anti-hero tale “Damzel of Death” feels like a demo told in the first person, topped and tailed with spoken word that makes it feel like the inspiration was something like Quentin Tarantino’s Natural Born Killers. Fun and quirky, this one screams out for the vocals to be brought further forward in the mix to give it a little more edge. The same can be said of “Lost Cause” which feels like it was written on a bad acid trip, combining odd movie samples with climbing Stoner Metal leads to fuel the insanity. Those permeate the Death Metal punch making the whole thing sound very arty before evil laughter introduces “Bitchcntscumfuck“. A middle finger to the world in Groove Metal with a better vocal mix, this one will get the heads banging with its primitive, old school qualities and abrasive riffs. It kind of feels like Shaw is taking on a high school bully in Mean Girls and that’s sentiment that runs into “Killing Fields“, however the emotive aspect is strangely absent due to the angst ridden way in which the vocals are delivered. The low budget film vibe that runs throughout these tracks provides an interesting undercurrent and there is a real potential here however this one really feels like it needs a good producer to help shape it a little bit more because with some refinement this could be something stronger [7/10]

Track Listing