It’s been a busy few years for Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein. From setting up his eponymous band, launching a debut album via his own Monsterman Records and the tiny matter of reforming and gigging the classic Misfits he is now completing the cycle with part II: As We Die of the Doyle legacy, this time partnering with Dave Ellefson’s EMP behemoth empire.

As ripped and muscular as the man himself, round two picks up where Abominator left off serving fat-free metal, dipped in the heartland of the East Coast. A main course of mid-paced “grown up” Thrash, with a side of Prong and Helmet, all with added dashes of Pantera; vocalist Alex Story graduated from the Anselmo school of gruff, which when added to Doyle’s own fleks of Dimebag in his lead style, means much of As We Die¸ particularly the burly stomp of ‘Blood On The Axe’, would sit nicely on side two of either Cowboys or Vulgar (both Atco).

Lean and sinewy, As We Die is, first and foremost, a Metal album, swinging punches in the Nineties pool of heaviness, trading in riffs and grooves. But that said, it does, of course, pepper its steak with pinches of Doyle’s other band; ‘We Belong Dead’ and ‘Witchcraft’ bringing those Surf Rock melodies that make The Misfits irresistible and leave a wry smile as a stronger hook or two on some of the other tracks could really have elevated this hefty beast.

A solid effort all round from this strapping old lad, who, as with Abominator, has delivered a staple diet of East Coast metal that dips its toe in Hardcore and Punk with decent results. While not likely to set the world on fire, Doyle more than proves their worth on a second album that serves a wide-ranging buffet of beefy Metal.

7.0/10

STEVE TOVEY