Rascal Whack – Maliveni

Rascal Whack
Maliveni
June 24, 2021
Playing time: 36:24

Greece can certainly be called a stronghold of Heavy Metal. Gus G. aka Kostas Karamitroudis (Firewind, ex-Ozzy Osbourne), one of the world’s best guitarists, comes from this south-eastern European country. But the country also has a lot to offer in the wider spectrum. Bands like Enemy of Reality, Septic Flesh, Fallen Arise, Rotting Christ, Nightrage or Planet of Zeus come to mind. And many, many more. I received a promo for the new album by Rascal Whack now. The heavy rock outfit from the capital Athens was founded in 2013. Two years later, the debut “Gameroller” was released.”Maliveni” is obviously the follow-up after six years.  The word Maliveni, means “cedar forest” and is an area located in the suburbs of the city of Athens.

Classic riffs with a stoner touch. A singer I first had to get used to. After I got used to it, I like the vocals very much. “Carved Ignorance” is calm, with deep bass tones and a wonderful solo of the distorted guitar. A good subwoofer is indispensable for enjoying the music. And this continues seamlessly with “Raging Groove”. The song title is concept. The sound literally grooves out of the speakers. This heavy side with roaring guitars in the midtempo range continues later on. But the individual songs are never boring. Whether “Hallucination”, “Not Enough” or “Pennies From Heaven”, no song structure is like the other. In between, they pick up the pace (“Slipping Away”) or add a bass line (“The Fly”).  

The sound on “Maliveni” is really powerful. Just as you would expect from a Heavy Rock or Stoner album. And the Greeks don’t let themselves go. They consistently sound out the midtempo range with their songs. An album that you can listen to several times and discover something new with almost every run-through.

Rascal Whack – Pennies from Heaven (Lyric video) https://youtu.be/qbhQADaRcVQ

Lineup:

Spiros Ladas – Lead Guitar
Gregory Tourvas – Rhythm Guitar, Vocals
Stathis Skaloumpakas – Vocals
Chris Ladas – Bass
Akis Delaportas – Drums

Track list:

• Carved Ignorance
• Raging Groove
• Hallucination
• Not Enough
• Slipping Away
• The Fly
• Pennies From Heaven
• Space Cowboys