23rd July 2025

Review: “Adapt and Overcome” by Aggro

Recorded with Charlie Wilson Jnr (In God’s Way, War Grave, New Graven Image) at Monolith Studios London, the sophomore EP “Adapt and Overcome” from London based Melodic Groove Metal crew Aggro has been a long time coming. Formed in 2018 the band bassist Ant Rosher, drummer Jon Moore, vocalist Dan Gallop and guitarist duo Rob Joyce (who has since exited stage left to be replaced by Andy Doyle) and Phil Williams who also handles clean vocals, the five piece landed their first punch with “This Burden” in 2019. That was followed a year later by five track EP “The Shift In Balance” before countless shows up and down the United Kingdoms green and pleasant land, turning stages to sawdust with everyone from Gutlocker to Imperium and Sore Teeth to Thrasherwolf. Holding their own with heavy groove laden riffs, brutal breakdowns and powerful emotive vocals, their explosive and dynamic approach reminiscent of bands like Dry Kill Logic, they proved themselves time and time again. Maybe that’s why they made us wait until 2023 for their next taped confessions with singles “Take A Stand” and “This Rage“…

Swirling sinister riffage with early 2000’s vibes rises to the surface as “Watch You Fall” begins, staccato riff breaks overlayed with some lead and almost tribal drum fills giving everything a nostalgic feel with a modern edge and instant appeal. Gallop’s barked vocals intertwine with cleans from Williams during the chorus, the pair going toe to toe before a chugging breakdown that plays on silence in old school fashion. Mid tempo guitars put bounce in the mosh pit after the sing-a-long parts and while this cut doesn’t necessarily have the wow factor as an opener, its got plenty going for and more than enough to seduce you into listening to more of the Aggro sound. Increasing the tempo and intensity a couple of notches with another piece of kindling on the fire “Help Declined” has more slick leads during the chorus, augmenting the powerful rhythms in style. Throwing back to the bands that were on Roadrunner Records in the early 2000’s once more means that Aggro very much wear their collective hearts on their sleeves and their influences are as obvious as their noses on their faces. That’s by no means a bad thing as with this band, like Ronseal, they do what it says on the tin and they do it very well.

A clean opening verse from Williams introduces “Unbroken“, an anthemic cut that finds Gallop barking with fists clenched before pointing a finger and screaming “now you’re starting a war!“. Nuanced rhythms and weighty grooves give this one instant head nodding appeal and you can easily imagine the band squeezing another 5-10 percent more energy out it live. A “bliegh!” moment before roars of “so let’s wake up the dead!” over a mid-tempo breakdown is an absolute old school masterclass and one of the records stand out moments. It’s actually reminiscent of the roar of “the limits of the dead!” and accompanying breakdown in “Psychosocial” by Slipknot, it’s that good. A melancholic introduction to “Desperate Cries” then transforms into something with a killer instinct as Aggro redecorate the walls, earworm riffs and a scream-a-long chorus ensuring this record is very much one the cliché all killer no filler applies [8/10]

Track Listing