On December 6th, 2016, Aittala unleashed their 4th full length LP: ‘American Nightmare’. The band was formed by Eric Aittala in 1992 in Raleigh, North Carolina and released a short EP, but then remained dormant for many years. After a long break, the project was brought back when Aittala released their first full length album in 2009, ‘Bed of Thorns’. The band went on to release two more LPs in 2011 and in 2014 (‘Haunt Your Flesh’ and ‘Effigy’). After various lineup changes, there has been a stable, strong lineup consisting of Eric Aittala on the lead guitar and vocals, Gary Smith on drums, and Andrew Sullivan on the bass. The new album was recorded at Incognito Studios, Raleigh NC. It was mixed and mastered by Mike Schaefer at Schaefer Sound Productions.
Aittala really blends a ton of genres together on this release. The old school metal feel takes people back to their roots of when they started listening to metal in the first place. The doom and blues sounds show the power that riffs can hold and will have your head nodding along with the music. The riffs really set the tone for a dark, fun album. “American Nightmare” leads you into the album with plenty of riffage and aggressive vocals from the lead man. This song manages to mix the new era sound of metal and also the old school sound, one of my favorite tracks. On the track “Leave”, the band shows their versatile song writing abilities by composing a more ballad-like song. The closing track, “Rise” is filled with catchy riffs and bridges. Then it kicks into more heavy hitting riffs and guitar solos that will move the soul. All in all, a very diverse record by an experienced band. Make sure to subscribe to them on YouTube and to go and buy the album on their website or BandCamp page. Below you can stream the album or watch the music video for the title track, “American Nightmare”. Also be sure to follow them on Facebook.
