Maladdiction

The Power Within
by Scott Hefflon

Unsigned metal is probably one of the hardest genres for me to review. Even most of the signed, “name brand” metal bands have gotten stuck in a rut and keep churning out record after record of the same style. If it’s only about aggression, then life is peachy, but if it’s about any semblance of innovation, then the shitpile is enormous. With that in mind, Maladdiction has all the trappings of a fine metal band. Including the area code (sorry, city-slicker elitism). Coming from the older Metallica school of chugga-chugga, Maladdiction throw in a few Testament-esque acoustic wanders and a driving stomp Pantera fans might just recognize. But while James Billings has a good throaty roar and all the players have their chops nice and tight, all the tunes do is blow doughnuts in the parking lot. Lots of noise, lots of stinky smoke, lots of adrenaline, but no forward momentum to speak of.