Alter Ego
WILLOWTIP
Ultra-heavy post-metallers ensure their first strike is deadly
Nug sounds like it should be the name of a bottom-of-the-barrel stoner crew who think their riffs are gnarly just because they smoked a joint while writing them. In actuality, the moniker belongs to a Ukrainian post-metal quintet who lie somewhere between the Neurosis and Meshuggah ends of the ‘skull-crushingly heavy’ scale. Alter Ego supplies enough metal to build an actual iron curtain, often evoking Cult Of Luna and then elevating the nastiness further through unfuckwithable djent. Add in the occasional, delectable guitar lead and some Tool-level bass chops, and you have one of the most jaw-droppingly ruthless debuts of 2020.