RASCAL WHACK - Maliveni

RASCAL WHACK

Album: Maliveni

Genre: Heavy / Stoner Rock

Release Date: June 24th, 2021

Country: Greece

Label: Self-Released

Band-Links: BANDCAMP / INSTAGRAM / FACEBOOK

RASCAL WHACK is a five-piece heavy rock band from Athens, Greece, and was founded in 2013. Their debut “Gameroller” saw the light of day in 2015, and was now followed by “Maliveni", which is out since June 24th, 2021.

The word “Maliveni” means «cedar-forest» and is an area that literally exists in the suburbs of Athens. Thematically, the album deals with the progressing growth of the city, its suffocating character, and its negative effect on people, who constantly ask for more and give less. “Maliveni” is the antithesis of this chaos: the return to the roots, the aim to pay attention to our inner self as human beings, and the need to live authentically, away from supposed patterns and idols.

RASCAL WHACK’s music is best described as heavy rock, that leans into the stoner or grunge direction every now and then. “Carved Ignorance” opens the album, with the rhythm section doing a great job from the beginning, so feet start tapping automatically. When the vocals join for the first time, I always feel some VILLAGERS OF IOANNINA CITY-vibes because of the guitar sound and the amazing, warm tone in the vocals. The following “Raging Groove” comes along very groovy indeed and is one of my favorites of theirs.

Over the next songs, they continue that way with variations in tempo: while “Hallucination” cools things down a bit, “Not Enough” and “Slipping Away” are rocking and straight-forward. With “Fly”, they get too repetitive for my personal taste, even though stoner fans might enjoy this I guess, but with “Pennies from Heaven” and the final “Space Cowboys”, they’re back on track again.

All-together, the Greek quintet delivers a strong album, recommended for fans of pure, heavy rock. The rough guitar sound fits good to the style, so do the melodic riffs and (rather rare) solos. What I like most are the groovy, varied rhythms and the awesome bass lines, as well as the amazing vocals. According to RASCAL WHACK, “Maliveni” is supposed to be “the escape, the sacred place of redefining and distancing oneself from ignorance and deception”. Give it a try to see if it works for you as well.

Written by Katha