Former Skinless madman Sherwood Webber is back with a new band. When a long-worshipped frontman leaves the band with which they made a name for themselves though, and then begins anew with project number two, it usually ends up sounding like a number two typically smells. And fans will usually follow said frontman for varying lengths of time depending on the degree of obsession a particular fan may be coping with. But soon enough for some, and not for others, the number two wafts eventually either send them running for the hills, or overcome the frontman’s devotees. It is safe to say, however, that in no possible way can Colorado’s Enemy Reign considered a number two, if you catch my drift. With their debut self-financed, self-released, and just about every other self-something you can think of EP “Means To A Dead End,” Enemy Reign threaten to be taken seriously as potential number one material. There can be no question, these guys and girl mean business. If before people were wondering why the hell Sherwood Webber would leave his fertile Upstate N.Y. roots and head for the rocky mountains, Enemy Reign and their thrill-ride of an EP “Means To A Dead End” are the reasons to end all reasons. Here we have a band that sprung from literally nowhere by popular conventions, and landed on all fours like a tiger, hungry to devour any and all living creatures in its sight. Before the band’s pedigree is further addressed the central element at hand, Enemy Reign’s infectious concoction of crossover death metal, must be brought to the forefront. There are many death metal bands out there, some very popular, who admittedly only listen to the style they purvey. And, for better or worse, it reflects immediately in their output; blastbeats and buzzsaws in, blastbeats and buzzsaws out. Enemy Reign draw together classic early-90’s rolling death metal ala Bolt Thrower, Sinister, Malevolent Creation, Deicide, and Cannibal Corpse, fuse it with extreme thrash in the vein of Exhorder, Demolition Hammer, and Solstice, integrate trademark N.Y. death metal like Pyrexia, Skinless, Internal Bleeding, and Suffocation which current deathcore leaders Despised Icon readily admit to being the foundation for their approach, and topped off with an unmistakable layer of east coast hardcore in all its injury-prone moshing glory. This is distinctive crossover for today and the future that hold just as much potential for cross-genre appeal as Sherwood Webber’s former band at the very least, and if they keep it up for their upcoming debut full-length, they could soon be rubbing shoulders with the top-tier deathcore acts commanding the extreme scene at the moment. But if their lineage is any indication, with Enemy Reign’s musicians having performed in Becoming The Enemy, Throat Culture, and Deadspeak among others, and drummer Andon Guenther having co-founded the up-and-coming extreme metal drumming video magazine www.sickdrummer.com, Enemy Reign are built to outlast any trend regardless of their inclusion in any particular subgenre for the time being. It was long accepted that Relapse recording artists and Skinless’ former touring comrades Cephalic Carnage were the most progressive, brutal, and enduring crossover death metal act that their hometown of Colorado would ever give birth to. Well, now they have some competition from a very hungry bunch; but this is won’t become the debacle we’re seeing in modern death metal scene where it’s become a childish competition to see who can Pro-Tools their album to be the fastest out of the bunch. It could only be considered friendly competition between old pals. After all, Enemy Reign’s producer on “Means To A Dead End” Dave Otero has been involved as a producer and contributor with Cephalic Carnage from their 2002 genre-defying album “Lucid Interval” until their most recent “Xenosapien” tech death landmark. Otero’s proven track record of helping great bands sound heavier on record than anyone else remains etched in stone with “Means To A Dead End” as Enemy Reign come across sounding like a band that has been jamming together for 10 years, and are already a live force to be reckoned with. While the band has only been together for a couple of years, their execution and work ethic are already being fast-established, and their recent announcement of inclusion in the upcoming Neurotic Deathfest 2010 in Europe alongside Origin (featuring former Skinless drummer John Longstreth), Dying Fetus, Napalm Death, Beneath The Massacre, Carcass, Bolt Thrower, and French hardcore institution Kickback is confirmation of the band’s live prowess.