Nicolas Cage Fighter – I Watched You Burn
Release Date: 12th September 2025
Label: Bleeding Art Collective and Blood Blast Distribution
Order/Stream
Genre: Metallic Hardcore
FFO: Dying Wish, Violent Life Violent Death.
Review By: Jeff Finch
There are some band names out there whose existence is enough to garner some sort of hype, or at least a level of non-musical intrigue, to bring listeners in for a chance to experience what’s in a name. Among these are the following: The Tony Danza Tapdance Extravaganza, The Callous Daoboys, Crippled Black Phoenix (this one got me), and today’s focus, probably the best of them, Nicolas Cage Fighter. Australian metallic hardcore already sounds gnarly, so throw a name in like this, and it’s an instant listen. The name brings you in, the music keeps you glued to the speaker, this new one I Watched You Burn a frenetic ass beater of an album.
Admittedly, it was the name that brought me here. Their first album got the eyebrow to curl in curiosity, and the news of a new one raised the hype. Nicolas Cage Fighter isn’t here to wow with technicality or swift time signature shifts or orchestration. No, they are here to beat listeners into submission with Hatebreed-like energy and sound. And how do they do that?
Riffs. So many riffs. The songs are a slight bit under thrash for pace, but they’re unrelenting from the get-go. Immediately, riffs, punishing double bass percussion, deep lows from our vocalist, the band hasn’t even made it 5 seconds without cranking the energy to 11. The title track, and first song, is blisteringly energetic and fun for fans of metallic hardcore. Growls and shrieks over frantic riffs and a bass that needs more showtime, the song shifts tempos but never wavers in rhythm and groove, a true ass beater from the first second.
I would be a terrible reviewer to say the rest of the album is similar to this song, but it’s true, and that’s meant as nothing but a strong compliment. Not once over the course of ten tracks does the band lose steam or sound like they’re phoning anything in; any one of these songs could have been the opener and had just as much of an impact. Take standout Tempest: slashing through the sonic veil with staccato fury, the track wastes no time gaining our focus before immediately shifting into a rhythmic chaos, the driving, fast-paced mid-tempo unrelenting in its simplistic heft, the sonic equivalent of a caveman smashing everything in their path. Quite frankly, the band specializes in fight songs on this album, the vitriol spit out by Nick Moriarty matched in intensity by the band, the band utilizing their unending endurance to craft a furious commentary on life, death, and humanity’s fate on a dying planet.
Where metallic hardcore may be boring to some as a “heard it all” type of genre, what Nicolas Cage Fighter does, besides making the man himself a fan, is crank up the power. While they clearly still hold that hardcore sound, on I Watched You Burn the group also blends their black metal and death metal influences expertly, upping the brutality from the first record and making damn sure everyone listening knows and remembers that. Valley of Agony is a chest beater, the riffs rife with thrash energy and the ending breakdown a neck injury just waiting to happen, while closer Tarnished Remains ends the album with one more onslaught of sheer brutality, the song never giving listeners a chance to breathe, absolutely crushing in its ferocity and vitriol.
Phenomenal name aside, Nicolas Cage Fighter has crafted an album that might as well have been tailor-made for cage fighters, the brutality, intensity, and sheer power of this album bordering on the cusp of overwhelming but never once crossing that line. Impressive performances and unwavering energy demonstrate that the band can separate themselves from the crowded metallic hardcore / metalcore scene with ease, ensuring their name is remembered for more than just being an amazing use of pun.
(4.5 / 5)
