Earth CallerCrook (EP)

Since 2018’s Crystal Death album, 613’s savage metal/core crew Earth Caller have released two singles (Spit and I Am No Good) leaving the average punter wondering, “so…when’s the album coming?”

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Well, not quite yet.

Though this EP it isn’t a feast of Earth Caller cuts, it’ll definitely satiate fan hunger; we’re not even counting frontman Josh Collard’s cooking (as in actual culinary skills; don’t look at his Instagram around dinner time, it makes whatever piddly dish you made look like week-old limp kebab lettuce.)

Virus (insert your own toilet paper joke here) will darken rooms with its alarm-bell riffs; it’s Earth Caller at their most bloodthirsty, rhythm thrashing and pummelling through the track with plenty of moshable breakdowns bolted to its steel frame.

This EP might be a stopgap, but you can sense they’re telling us something: “We’re just getting started.”

Spit featuring Issac Black of DVSR channels the great rock-rap crossovers like Body Count or Stray From The Path, Black spitting venom to Collard’s straight fire. EC’s rhythm section punches a lyrical groove, swaggering around like prizefighters come to dominate a Vegas title bout. If a UFC fighter uses this as entrance music one day, I will not be in the least surprised.

The hip-hop influence is carried over into Push It, Collard slinging rhymes straight from the heart before going into beast mode amid a fire breathing chorus. It’s a seamless marriage of ‘core riffs and natural hip-hop beats. Their European influences come to the fore in single I Am No Good, as guitarist Carlo Darbisi grinds out death alongside drummer Josh Clinch’s floating blast beats. Collard’s chorus wouldn’t feel too out of place on a Soilwork joint, brimming with melody.

Going in a more progressive direction by layering a mist of synths atop anthemic riffs, Wherewithal has a triumphant feel, like a Hollywood hero overcoming the last ordeal. Guitars marshals energy around Collard, pouring his heart out into the mic and setting us up for one hell of a sequel.

Crook runs a gamut of sounds, any of which would be a great future direction for the band. This EP might be a stopgap, but you can sense they’re telling us something: “We’re just getting started.”