Full Album Stream: Raptore ‘Blackfire’
If Riot’s Fire Down Under and Helstar’s Remnants of War sped through heavy metal’s red light at 65 miles per hour in a De Tomaso Pantera, it’d be a lot like Argentinian-now-Spaniard Nico Cattoni’s Raptore. The quartet–sporting Cattoni, guitarist Jamie Killhead, drummer Ángel Smolski, and bassist Cristian Blade–got their spikes and glitz start in 2012, citing the Liege Lord, Chastain, and Stormwitch from the old guard as their primary influences and White Wizzard, Striker, and Cauldron from the newjacks as modern lights. By 2016, Raptore had issued their debut Rage n’ Fever on Argentina’s Total Desaster Productions. A veritable age–plus a global pandemic–stalled Raptore, but didn’t knock out the aggro out of their respective steps.
Based out of Barcelona, Spain, Raptore found their way onto Germany’s vibrant Dying Victims Productions, where they share roster space with Animalize, Venator, Armory, and more. Tough as nails, dark as sin yet singing like songbirds, the outfit have prepared their sophomore effort, Blackfire. It’s a banger. Sure, there’s some thoughtful nuances throughout–check out “Demon’s Lust” and its instrumental sidecar in “Dirge”–but Raptore aren’t sentimental in their heavy metal ascent. Songs like “Triumphal March to Hell,” “Devil Ascends,” and the title are metal-pedaled, fueled by tequila-energy drink-strip club bombs.
Say Raptore: “Blackfire is for sure our darkest and fastest elease so far. We wanted to explore a deeper and more meaningful aspect of the band, but without losing our rocking, catchy vibes that are intrinsic to us. The atmosphere created delivers those feelings and you’ll find yourself surrounded by darkness, but in an exciting and frantic way.”
Rock hard, party harder… no life til headbanging leather with Raptore’s Blackfire!