UMUR Loincloth is an US technical/progressive metal act formed by members of Confessor and Breadwinner. The band was formed in 2000 after Confessor disbanded and released this demo in 2003. 2 of the 4 tracks on the 11:46 minutes long demo are also featured on the "Church Burntings / New Jersey" single also released in 2003. Those two releases were the only releases by the band for many years as bassist Cary Rowells and drummer Steve Shelton returned to Confessor and focused their energy on that band. Loincloth never officially disbanded though and they finally released their debut full-length studio album "Iron Balls of Steel" in January 2012. The album features the same lineup as this 2003 demo. In addition to the above mentioned rhythm section the lineup also includes guitarists Tannon Penland and Pen Rollings. None of the four tracks featured on the demo appeared on the tracklist for "Iron Balls of Steel (2012)".

Stylistically the music on the demo is instrumental technical/progressive metal played by four very skilled musicians. The rhythm section is on fire, delivering varied and powerful technical playing, and the two guitarists follow suit. There are times when the music sounds like 90s Confessor without Scott Jeffrey´s distinct sounding high pitched vocals in front, but this is slightly more focused on technical playing and not as doomy as Confessor. The demo is very well produced, featuring a sharp, powerful, and detailed production, which suits the material well.

The material is well written although not instantly memorable as there are very little in the way of melody featured on the compositions. It´s pretty cold and clinical in that way, which also provides the material with a gloomy futuristic atmosphere. There´s no doubt it´s fascinating and intriguing music seen from a technical point of view, but to those who prefer hook laden or melodic oriented music, this could very well turn out to be a hard challenge. For the style this is a quality release though and considering that it´s a demo, this sounds surprisingly professional. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Iron Balls of Steel" is the debut full-length studio album by US technical/progressive metal act Loincloth. The album was released through Southern Lord Recordings in January 2012. Loincloth was formed as far back as 2000, and features among others members of Confessor and Breadwinner. The band released a couple of minor releases in 2003 before a longer hiatus, which was in large part due to the reformation of Confessor, which kept drummer Steve Shelton and bassist Cary Rowells busy for a number of years (and spawned the "Unraveled (2005)" album).

If you are familiar with the characteristic technical doom/thrash metal sound of Confessor, you´ll probably instantly recognise the drumming style of Steve Shelton. The man is simply a drummer extraordinaire, and his work is always a pleasure to listen to. The major difference here, among other things, is of course that the music on "Iron Balls of Steel" is fully instrumental. It´s a very rythmic technical/progressive type of metal, with only few melodic traits. As a result the tracks are a bit hard to tell apart and overall it seems that technical playing is emphasised over atmosphere and hooks. A kind of intellectual "musicians" music. There´s no doubt the music is technically very impressive and occasionally the band are able to conjure up a dark and haunting atmosphere too that provides the music with a needed extra dimension, but in the end I´m left sligthly dissatisfied with the lack of memorable moments.

If you enjoy instrumental technical/progressive metal with a mathcore edge "Iron Balls of Steel" should prove to be an interesting listen. If you crave any form of melody to soothe your ears, this is probably an album you can pass by. I´d say a 3 - 3.5 star (65%) rating is warranted.