Celebrating a staggering 25 years as a band—seriously, how did that happen? 2000 feels like yesterday—Raging Speedhorn show no signs of mellowing with Night Wolf. If anything, they’ve doubled down on their signature brutality, delivering one of their most punishing and unrelenting records yet.
From the outset, Night Wolf makes it clear that Speedhorn have no interest in playing nice. “Blood Red Sky” is an ominous, ice-cold slab of doom-laced intensity, arguably one of their bleakest tracks to date. The band has always thrived on heaviness and nastiness, but there’s something particularly inhospitable about this record—perhaps due to the fact that every member contributed to the writing process, including co-vocalist Dan Cook for the first time.
“Buzz Killer” brings back a more familiar Speedhorn groove—still violent and nasty, but with a swagger that makes it instantly recognizable. Meanwhile, “The Blood Code” slows things to a near-crawl, channelling early Orange Goblin with its lumbering bass groove. Speed be damned—this is pure punishment. If you like getting sonically beaten to a pulp, you’ll be right at home.
The album as a whole leans slower than usual, even on the more accessible tracks like “Can’t Stop,” which still refuses to be rushed. Then, just when you think Speedhorn have embraced this deliberate pacing, boom—they throw it into overdrive. “Every Night’s Alright for Fighting” is a full-throttle return to old-school Speedhorn chaos, and it’s utterly brilliant.
Side two kicks off with the title track, and “Night Wolf” is as ferocious as its name suggests, dripping with nastiness and a gang-like intensity. The line “You better believe it’s true” has never sounded more menacing. Then there’s “DOA”—and let’s be clear, no band delivers this level of controlled destruction quite like Speedhorn.
“Comin’ In Hard” is about as close as Night Wolf gets to a hit, a pure fists-in-the-air anthem destined for massive festival crowds. Interestingly, the second half of the album is more accessible than the first, with “Dead Men Can’t Dance” acting as a bridge between the album’s harshest moments and its more groove-driven sections.
That said, Speedhorn haven’t forgotten their roots. “Dead Reckoning” clocks in at under two minutes, a furious, no-frills reminder that we’re all “going straight down to hell.” Given the way 2025 is shaping up, Night Wolf feels like the perfect soundtrack to the chaos.
Rating: 8/10
