Jason Stallworth – Masterpeace

Band: Jason Stallworth
Title: Masterpeace
Label: Independent
Release date: September 13, 2019
Country: USA
Format reviewed: Compact Disk

The metal landscape is a much different place today than it was even a decade ago. Metal musicians from every corner of the world now have multiple platforms to push their material into the void and beyond. While this has led to a crowded pit at times, the need for ingenuity means only the strong survive. Enter JASON STALLWORTH, a devoted and talented metalhead who has been pushing his solo work independently in the underground for years with three full-length releases and even metal as hell Christmas single since 2013. This time around we are presented with Stallworth’s “Masterpeace”, which blasts the senses with a mix of high energy melodic death metal and bursts at the seams with wild tangents of breakneck soloing.

Things kick off with “Dragon’s Flame” which hammers into action with a pace-setting shred that give you a good idea what to expect throughout the album. “Masterpeace” showcases a mixture of vocal styles, but we get a good sample on the opening track of the range Stallworth is capable of. Like always, I personally prefer the heavy growling vocal styles much more than others, but there’s more than enough of the heavy stuff to go around! “Peaceful War” and “Anthem of Brutality” keep the tempo up with some kick-ass guitars and solos that are very powerful and devastating while always complimenting the situation.

“Masterpeace” is a record full of variety when it comes to its apparent influences. The title track starts off with a lighter tone than the ones leading in, yet it evolves into heavier tendencies with an almost Dethklok worship on vocals at times. The diversity continues with tracks like “Passing Through”, and “Never Enough” having strong Trivium vibes while ”The Metalizer” and “Wings of Destruction” have thrashy gallops to accompany the phenomenal shred instead.

Things close off with “Final Reign”, which opens with the albums first acoustic guitar. The eerily empowering strums are the fog before the battle, with an enormous melodic death metal sprint erupting out of it. Stallworth takes more of a modern approach to the grand finale, with both the vocals and riff structure echoing bands like Amon Amarth, Insomnium, and In Flames.

Amongst all the variety there is one constant throughout “Masterpeace”, which of course is Stallworth’s blazing, completely eviscerating, and emotionally provoking solo work. With each song full of furious pick work to keep the things blasting forward, we are given endless kick-ass riffs to complement the never-ending flow of liquid metal. Of course, I have to mention the fact this entire effort would have been better off with live drumming and bass but given the circumstances, I am still thoroughly impressed with the composition of the instrumentals. My favourite tracks were “Anthem of Brutality” and “Final Reign”, both full of aggression and showcasing the best that JASON STALLWORTH has to offer. I am eager to see what’s next for this shredding beast, but in the meantime blast some top-notch independent metal and support the underground! 7/10 Metal Yeti

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