Satanic Surfers - Back From Hell

There's a good chance whatever has been said here about No Fun At All's latest album to be repeated for Satanic Surfer's "Back From Hell". But let's not go that way. Instead, let's talk about how fuckin fast are Satanic Surfers.  With yet again reformed crew, the Swedish band went straight to the fifth gear on "Back From Hell" and this surely is a good thing.

In times when punk rock has so many different faces, Satanic Surfers didn't lose their identity. "Back From Hell" is a sucker punch with raw power but it's also heavy as fuck, mainly thanks to the great guitar duels. While it's easy to compare this release to No Fun At All's "GRIT", mostly because of compatriotism and similar timelines of rising to fame, this album actually can draw a lot more comparisons with Belvedere's "Revenge Of The Fifth".

Satanic Surfers didn't waste much time with mid-tempo bullshit, unlike other similar bands. They start on a galloping note, race it fast through the whole 10 songs and finish it on the same speed. Just. Like. That. Yes, there are some parts of songs where the band slows it down for like 20-30 seconds but it's still hard to catch your breath. The drumming has a lot to do with the album's pace but those awesome heavy metal guitar riffs and occasional solos plus the playful bass lines make "Back From Hell" equally hard-kicking and melodic. There are equal portions of vocal harmonies and tight hardcore gang yells of if you have a crush on either of them, you'll be just fine.

You could argue that might not be that many catchy or memorable songs but the final refrain in "Tribute" - "It's just too much Scooby Doo" will be stuck in your mind for a while. Other tracks like "Self-Medication" and "Madness" invest more in "oohs" & "aahs" done by the book written by Bad Religion. The only song that is kinda weirdish is "Pato Loco" which is mostly a heavy metal semi-instrumental with occasional tribal-like vocals and a bunch of solos by the fairly unknown guitarist Patricio Vergara. But kudos to him, he adds even more technicality.

Millencolin, No Fun At All, Refused, and now Satanic Surfers are all active and doing pretty well. So, this might be a good time for another recently reformed band from this country - Adhesive to go back to the studio. But anyway, "Back From Hell" is exactly what one would expect - furious skatepunk and in all fairness, it's better that way.

Listen if you:

Can't stop skating

Have been through hell and came back

Love fast music