{"id":105916,"date":"2026-03-08T00:00:06","date_gmt":"2026-03-08T00:00:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/?p=105916"},"modified":"2026-04-01T10:58:51","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T09:58:51","slug":"ep-review-accuser-taste-of-steel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/ep-review-accuser-taste-of-steel\/","title":{"rendered":"ACCUSER – Taste Of Steel EP (2026) | Album \/ EP Reviews @ Metal Forces Magazine"},"content":{"rendered":"

ACCUSER
\nTaste Of Steel EP<\/strong><\/span>
\n\"\"
\nSelf-released (2026)<\/span>
\nRating: 7.5\/10<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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I really don\u2019t understand it when new bands take the moniker of a well-established band. In this instance it\u2019s Arlington, Texas-based thrashers Accuser. Surely, when this combo came up with their band name they knew of veteran German act Accu\u00a7er? Or maybe the Texan quintet had been living under a rock? Anyway, Taste Of Steel<\/em> is their debut release, a four-song EP from the line-up of vocalist Alfredo Sanchez, axe men Isaiah Baxter and Thomas Norman, bass player Adam Crim, and drummer Philip Norman.<\/p>\n

To its credit, this is a very good EP, and one which reeks of 1986 nostalgia, particularly in the searing hot speed metal riffs and the dynamic vocals which veer towards angry U.S. power metal too. There\u2019s plenty of zip in the guitar department and a hefty amount of wallop in the percussion, especially with my favourite song \u2018Destructive Forces\u2019. Hints of Overkill merge with the aforementioned U.S. power metal and the lesser known Atlanta, Georgia-based act Kinetic Dissent.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a genuine richness about the EP as opening song \u2018Heart Attack\u2019 adds a slice of Teutonic fury to its pace. Sanchez spews a Tom Araya (Slayer<\/a>) styled high pitch scream amidst the barrage of drums and a D.R.I. choppiness, circa 1988. It really is good throwback speed metal. Sure, back in the day there were hordes of similar acts producing similarly designed hostility, but Accuser knows how to relay its potent message.<\/p>\n

\u2018The Conqueror\u2019 sounds like a speeded up New Wave Of British Heavy Metal cut as Sanchez burps \u201cI have the power, I hold the might… I am the heir to the throne of the king\u201d<\/em> over a scintillating dose of aggressive riffage. Now, some of the more knowledgeable metalheads out there may recall that a few years ago an unidentified song (possibly entitled \u2018The Fallen King\u2019 or \u2018Fall Of The King\u2019, or something similar) from the 80s caused quite a stir online. As far as I\u2019m aware the artist remains unknown, but if Accuser weren\u2019t a new band then I’d say they were responsible for the cult gem. The fact these guys have so seamlessly tapped into that era is testament to their talent and chemistry.<\/p>\n

There are a multitude of bands attempting to sound old and retro although only a few have pulled it off, but as \u2018Operation Decapitation\u2019 rounds off this EP I\u2019m left applauding its charm and energy. I\u2019d still consider a change of band name guys, something more original and apt for what is essentially a thrash gem.<\/p>\n

Neil Arnold<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ACCUSER Taste Of Steel EP Self-released (2026) Rating: 7.5\/10 I really don\u2019t understand it when new bands take the moniker of a well-established band. In this instance it\u2019s Arlington, Texas-based thrashers Accuser. Surely, when this combo came up with their band name they knew of veteran German act Accu\u00a7er? Or maybe the Texan quintet had […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6023,24],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-105916","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-accuser-usa","category-album-ep-reviews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105916","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=105916"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105916\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":105917,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105916\/revisions\/105917"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=105916"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=105916"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=105916"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}