Gruff, tough, and rougher than a rhino’s nads, Step to Freedom weld the brute-force belligerence of Bolt Thrower’s In Battle There Is No Law! to the oppressive darkness of Antisect’s Out From The Void. The Nizhny Novgorod, Russia, band’s new self-titled album follows on from a trio of releases packed with fierce metallic crust, with 2019’s The Rotten Era being the best of that bunch. Step to Freedom’s latest album follows a similar ‘keep it dark, keep it mean‘ trajectory. The heavy gauge crust within crushes all challengers, and the album’s über-stench cover art mirrors the axe-wielding uproar perfectly.

Obviously, it’s a tense time for Russian punk bands and their fans. Dissent is fraught with risk, and things look dystopia-level bleak. However, at the very least, Step to Freedom’s latest album has allowed the band to purge some psychological pressure via a stack of raucous tracks. Ultimately, exorcising significant stresses is one of heavy music’s key directives, right? Emotional liberation via audio eruptions … something like that.

As usual, Step to Freedom inject traces of chugging old school thrash into their rage-driven stenchcore. (If you want a few ‘how stench?’ reference points, see the punishing salvos of Swordwielder, Fatum, Warkrusher, or Sanctum.) There are definite hooks here, too. But Step to Freedom drag those same melodies through the sewers, adding a welcomingly thick layer of crud.

Maximum filth and aggression spearheaded Step to Freedom’s previous releases, and their new album leads with the same intimidating intensity. Ferocious anger powers “Chasms of Soul”, “Control Therapy”, and “Pseudo Reality”, while the scorching “Bad Karma” sits alongside gloomier and doomier dirges like “Deadly Fortress” and “New Life Format”. Primal songs arise from the ashes of catastrophic ruin as guttural vocals and gravelled riffs careen into churning bass and drums. The breadth and depth of the monstrous epic “Revengeance Altar” underscores a crucial point; namely, that Step to Freedom’s creative strengths have never sounded stronger.

Step to Freedom serve up a grim feast with squalor and decay sitting at the heart of the meal. Their new album’s wretched atmosphere reflects a world where conflict endures as disparities increase, and the most vulnerable among us are invariably left to suffer. Step to Freedom speak of an ugly reality where misanthropy metastasizes in many of us. But here’s the good news; the band are here to drain the pus. We’re all infected with myriad ills and awash in psychic pain, but here’s your medicine. Take a double dose thrice daily – your torments will soon be trampled into dust.

• Label: Blown Out Media
• Format Type: 12"
• Year: 2024