Hardcore is as synonymous with New York as Central Park, 5th Avenue and the Statue Of Liberty, and names such as Cro-Mags, Sick Of It All, Biohazard and Madball have all been products of the NYC streets. A name less well known however is that of Merauder and despite near twenty years of activity they are all but unknown to the wider world of metal. With this release this may all change!

'God Is I' is the first Merauder release since the tragic death of original guitarist in 2006 and with such a pivotal lynchpin removed from the equation 'God Is I' could have fallen flat on it's arse. To be fair the Merauder of 2009 bears little resemblance to the outfit that brought us 'Master Killer' with only Jorge Rosado remaining, and with this new blood has come a new attitude and 'God Is I' is unquestionably the most potent Merauder release since 1996's 'Master Killer'.

Rosado's vocals are as potent as they ever where and still have that gruff hardcore venom on which his reputation is built. Merauder are by no means a one man show as Rosado's vocals accompanies the NYC trademark stomp, soaring riffs and unstoppable grooves; everything you would want to be fair from any Hardcore release. 'God Is I' follows a fairly traditional methodology and formula, while originally is not the albums strongest asset the songs are produced and executed with aplomb. A guaranteed hit amongst the Cro-Mags / Agnostic Front crowd out there and proves that there is life in the old dog yet.....and boy do they still have a bite!