Release Date July 17th, 2026
Format Cassette/Tape
Genre Black/Speed Metal
Origin United Kingdom
Äxe emerged from the London underground in May 2025 with “Warriors Of The Death Raid,” a first demo built from black metal abrasion, speed metal velocity, and hardcore punk aggression. Their first concert appearance was followed by support dates with Antediluvian and Ceremonial Bloodbath during the latter bands’ European tour. Festival appearances came next, including Incineration Festival in London, placing Äxe in front of a wider extreme metal audience within a short period.
The band’s lineage runs through the nuclear punk of G.I.S.M. and Deathside, the blackened riffing of Aura Noir and Zemial, the deranged speed of Syphilitic Vaginas, and the crust metal legacy of Sacrilege. Those references are present in the tempo, guitar tone, and reckless drumming, although Äxe approach the mixture with the impatience of a young band working on instinct. With one previous demo and a growing list of concerts behind them, “Autogeddon” marks their second substantial release and their first cassette for Caligari Records.
“Autogeddon” contains eight songs across a little more than half an hour, a generous duration for music running at this level of intensity. Am Of Grave Miasma handled the engineering, mixing, and mastering, retaining the tempo fluctuations, cymbal spill, and overloaded guitar sound created without click tracks or triggers. The guitars form a scorched blur of tremolo riffs, punk chord attacks, and speed metal runs, while the drums race underneath with little concern for exact synchronization.
Bass definition is limited when every frequency collides, and several riff changes disappear inside the rush, though the vocals remain prominent through a raw, throat torn rasp. The production has the disorder of a live performance, an effective choice for Äxe’s style, even when the lack of separation reduces the impact of individual riffs.
Most arrangements depend on rapid cycles and relentless momentum, with brief changes of pace adding necessary contrast before the next acceleration. Sameness becomes the main problem during the final stretch, since the continuous velocity and similar guitar textures make several songs blend together, and tighter editing could have made the longer cuts more lethal. “Autogeddon” has enough riff craft, physical energy, and punk nerve to rise above pure noise, leaving Äxe with a bruising second demo whose excesses are part of its appeal and part of its ceiling.
|7.5
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