Admittedly, not all of the partnerships are quite as banging. RATATATA overdoes it on the Electric Callboy component, while Song 3 (featuring Slaughter To Prevail) feels too much of a contrivance – pitting metal’s most terrifying frontman, the bloodcurdling Alex Terrible, against the sweetness of our heroines feels, and sounds, a bit obvious.
Those, though, are compounded by the fact that everything else is so good. Notably, the ones featuring BABYMETAL on their own. KxAxWxAxIxI is the closest they’ve come to hip-hop, albeit punctuated by terrifying guttural vocals and lurching grooves. While Algorism and White Flame ー白炎ー are both head-spinning blasts of melody sure to work brilliantly during live shows.
On one hand, you can’t help wanting just a bit more BABYMETAL on this BABYMETAL album. But surely that’s a compliment? Either way, there are moments of genius here. In forging new bonds and attempting to break new ground, METAL FORTH’s intentions are noble and the executions occasionally excellent.
Verdict: 4/5
For fans of: Bring Me The Horizon, Poppy, Enter Shikari
METAL FORTH is released on August 8 via Capitol. Get your special-edition Kerrang! Presents BABYMETAL magazine now