Zach Hill and Mick Barr

What do you get when you cross one of the most unwieldy drummers going with a true guitar god? A duo exchange that challenges the gods themselves to strike them down right where they shred and end their unholy torrent of blistering speed wailing. The pairing of Hella drummer extraordinaire Zach Hill and well-spread heavy finger champ Mick Barr (Orthrelm, Octis, Ocrilim, Crom-Tech, etc.) is definitely a match made in heavy "free” metal heaven, and Shred Earthship does just that — crank the energy levels up to smouldering and keep the flames erupting all over the damned place. This sounds like what would happen if hell ran out of room and decided to take heaven over, all spastic fury and splitting tendons. At 75 minutes this improvised blitzkrieg is a bit much to take, but for anyone with a massive need to rip out some inner rage, this is going to be the heated session they need to get the job done. For fans of separate camps, Shred Earthship isn’t as striking or essential as Barr’s compositional work, but in regards to the flurry of off-the-cuff projects Hill has been sticking it through these days, this is definitely a highlight.