Reviewed by Tobias Beament


Ramon Zarate got you right where they want you...on the knife's edge!

Out of the blue these four fire breathers from Belgium appear, lock and load folks, Ramon zarate is here to rock your sox off. Honestly television set no.2 have to go (out of the window) cause 'Ramon' is here to beat the shit out of you!

The debut album by Ramon Zarate delivers 10 well placed kung-fu moves and like a Belgian blue these guys are heavy weight champions. I'm banging my head against the floor, holy madre...this is like two smoking barrels, more than enough to blow grannie's walker sky high!

The riff gods rejoice when Ramon zarate takes the floor, like titans of rock they bottle up with 'Fuck this', a high explosive cluster bomb that nail you against the wall. Intensive and fuzz drenched, action-packed and with a glow rarely behold,this track totally blew me away. Track two, 'dust to dust' is just as cool as the first one, not quite as fast but heavier than the previous. Lots of groove and heavy riffings, one of my 10 out of 10 favourites on this album!

'Ramon' sharpen his knife and on the third throw he once again hits the ceiling, 'Blue max' is definitly one of the high lights on the album, just over three-minute mark and reminds me of everything good in life. Think big and think loud and you get close to what this song is all about. The whole album is like getting ass whipped by a steroid-pumped giant on dope. Unlike many other bands Ramon zarate manage to keep up the guard during the whole album, nice guitar arrangement , tight drummings and incredible vocals which making it an enjoyable listening.

Tracks that stands out are definitly Fuck this, Dust to dust, Blue max, Sex me honey and Ramon ends with the instrumental spanish-sounding 'Sling shot' which is a worthy conclusion to this outstanding piece of work. Similar bands are Rodeo queen, Calamus, Activator, Duster 69, Mannhai, Mustasch and of course Kyuss.