We have had four years of calm since the release of Hammer The Bastards, but the storm of chaos returns as Manchester’s “feral kings of the underworld,” Black Metal/Crust Punks Wolfbastard, prepare to unleash their latest turbo-charged hellish offering. Their fourth full-length studio offering, Satanic Scum Punks, is eleven tracks just shy of thirty minutes, and is guaranteed to be a hugely catchy and entertaining assault on your senses.
Wolfbastard – Satanic Scum Punks
Release Date: 13 March 2026
Words: Jools Green
Opening piece, It’s Fucking Dark, is definitely a track of two halves. Opening on a classic icy Black Metal intro filled with dark pomp and atmosphere, culminating in an acerbic scream, it then totally changes tack into a crusty D-beat drive and a punk riffing heralded by the vitriolic scream of “FUCK OFF!”
Throughout, there is the catchy title repeat of “It’s Fucking Dark.” There is also a great Black Metal undercurrent of riffing that surfaces throughout the piece, coming to prominence at its zenith before ebbing back to the dark atmosphere it opened with. A superbly imperfect circle of a track, I love it!
The longest piece on the album by far, at over four minutes, is the title track, Satanic Scum Punks. It is a punchy driver of a track throughout, with a touch of Poison Idea to the catchy repeat riff that courses across the piece, which I love. This is punctuated with searing screams across the duration of the piece, and is as lyrically catchy as well as witty.
Even more of a driving beast is Let The Bastards Burn, delivering an engaging meld of hardcore drive, blackened riffs and acidic vocals. The message is quite clear in the title, and the closing torturous scream and searing lead work perfectly visualise that.
Opening like a thunderous storm and continuing to deliver dark, destructive riffs throughout, Hail Satan Kurwa is an absolute annihilator of a track. With a mid-point blood curdling scream that bursts out of a wave riffs, it is not just a great listen but lyrically fascinating, given that Kurwa is a multi-purpose Polish expletive with the same broad ranging flexible usage as its English equivalent. Language is wonderful, isn’t it?
F.O.T.D. unleashes a more undulating meld of catchy driving crusty black riffing with slick switching that holds your attention throughout. The title and, therefore, lyrical content offer firm instructions to anyone who needs them and needs no explanation from me either. Not sure? You will find out when you hear it.
After a haunting opener, Blood On Steel jumps straight into a galloping drive with a straightforward but massively engulfing repeat that drags you along in its wake, whether you want to go or not. The mid-point scream cuts through like a knife, heralding an increase in intensity as this beast hurtles to the finishing line. But before it gets there, you get a drop in pace and a decidedly groove-rich edge creeping in, which contrasts well with Dez’s raw, acidic vocal delivery.
Heavily punk-influenced, Drink For Hell is a superb up-tempo beast. I love the D-beat rhythm and punk bass line. It adds a fun edge to the sound with some intense blasts of riffing packed in there for added impact. Lyrically, some might say it is an instruction manual for living your best life. Regardless, it is an excellent piece that is guaranteed to make you smile.
There is no mistaking the message in Fuck The Bastards, and let us be honest, we have all been there and said or thought it at some point. Now Wolfbastard have put it to music for us with this vitriolic, driving, and somewhat cathartic anthem.
Aside from the title being a great play on words, Manic Street Creatures is a brutal driving short, sharp shock of ninety-seven seconds. This is a get in, get the job done and get the hell out again, whilst leaving as much carnage as possible kind of track.
Musically, You Fucking Rat is calmer with a great undulation to the driving Punk-infused riffs that are melded with blacker intense swathes and a catchy D-beat coursing beneath. Lyrically, they make it quite clear what will happen if they are crossed. Quite right too.
The final black crusty and very angry offering B.I.F.F.O. charges to the finish with one maniacal and dark D-beat drive ending as it began, closing on a tirade of screams and a deranged shout of “FUCK OFF.”
One of the things I love about Wolfbastard is that, alongside that high level of creativity and skill, there runs in parallel a huge sense of fun and humour, which makes their music all the more engaging. It also has not escaped my notice that the further you get into this album, the faster and more insane the pieces get.
One thing is for sure is, when Wolfbastard are on a roll, there is no stopping or slowing them. So prepare yourself for wanton destruction and drunken devastation with the unleashing of Satanic Scum Punks.
Released on 13 March 2026 via Apocalyptic Witchcraft Recordings, Satanic Scum Punks will be available on limited edition vinyl, as a digipak CD, cassette, and digital download. For more details, visit the Apocalyptic Witchcraft Recordings website.
