You’d be hard pressed to find a review of Asomvel that doesn’t mention Motörhead. Comparisons to the metal heavyweights might seem like high praise for this Yorkshire trio, but it’s undoubtedly deserved.
Twenty-year-old vocalist Ralph Robinson channels the spirit of Lemmy with his mutton chop sideburns and 70s ’tache. Fantastic facial hair isn’t the only similarity, though; these guys play the kind of hard and fast metal’n’roll that could well leave you stone deaf forever. From the moment they storm the stage, the Northern three-piece let loose an unrelenting barrage of riffage, barely pausing for breath before hammering through another salvo and very quickly getting heads banging. And it’s no easy feat to create a stadium-worthy stage presence in a small, makeshift gig venue like Fuel but they’ve somehow managed. Founding member and Ralph’s old man, Lenny Robinson, smashes out some expert solos while drummer Josh Stephen even manages to steal some limelight from their brazen frontman. But all too quickly the band have torn through their setlist from Trash Talker to Full Moon Dog and, barely discernible over the ringing in the rowdy crowds’ ears, Ralph calls out to an applauding crowd, “We are Asomvel. A dream to some… A nightmare to others.” For fans of punishingly loud and blisteringly fast heavy metal, it’s been certainly more of the former.
