Review: “Bitter Lucid Truth” by Valletta

Urgent, aggressive and soaked in Black ‘n Roll, opening cut “Blood and Jesus” finds vocalist and guitarist Keenan Carroll venting his spleen in time honoured fashion with a genuine sense of rage to the point of repulsion. These aren’t the fleeting thoughts of someone being driven slowly insane but those of someone who has witnessed something they find abhorrent which is now trapped in the minds eye to be replayed over an over like a re-occurring nightmare. Sonically the Valletta have embraced a sound reminiscent of Tribulation with harsh vocals cutting against the grain of blackened riffs, the energy of the solo a thing of beauty. After that razor sharp first stab in the dark, “Cold Death” slaps with a bouncy, ear worm of a main riff, the harsh vocals almost feeling too much for it in places, which is all part of its genius. Clever drum fills during the fun and quirky final third mean once this one gets inside your head, there is no escape. In the Valletta blend of Black n’ Roll it’s all about the contrast between the harsh, bleak and cold elements that smash against the rocks of the warm guitars like the vessel of a sailor caught by the charms of a siren. There are points where it feels almost a little self indulgent, eclectic or perhaps even eccentric but then don’t all guilty pleasures?

Former bassist and Mo’ynoq mastermind Donald Boyd lends his throat to “Aggressor“, a buzzsaw Death Metal riffs of the first half making way for a soaring mid section before returning for a punchy final chorus. Flipping the script almost entirely, the band slide into mournfully melancholic shoe-gaze with “Doing Well“, a cut that sounds like “The Dark Side of the Moon” era Pink Floyd during the first half of its lament. However the poison soon flows through the veins with a step up into crunchy guitars and brutal vocals during the second half that somehow doesn’t completely cast aside the reflective and bleak atmospheric. How they’ve harness a seething rage and channel it into dynamic and expansive songwriting beggars belief, the pulverizing blast beats of grand finale “Spitting the Word” raising the temperature in hell with a flourish. The lyrical title track, it demonstrates the bands ability to combine style and substance with harsh vocals and free flowing guitars at its black beating heart. The haunting acoustic notes with blistering leads over the top have no place being this good and yet… [7.5/10]

1. Blood and Jesus

2. Cold Death

3. Aggressor (ft. Donald Boyd of Mo’ynoq)

4. Doing Well

5. Spitting the Word