_Villains_ is just a five track EP, which honestly doesn't give it enough of a chance to tackle this originality challenge. Some parts come off as massively heavy and aggressive while some other parts sound a little too cluttered. The opening track "Snakes in Black Suits" has a bunch of cool riffs, and there's a very intelligent drum line near the end there, but I found the introductory speech a little too long. The breakdown in the second half of "Deceiver" is the finest bit of technical display on _Villains_, while "God of Carnage" sounds like the most complete and patiently developed track on the record.

On the other hand, balancing the deep vocals with the severe down-tuning did prove to be a very delicate balance. On "Assassins" for example, which has a pulsating rhythm and a driving pace, the vocals are way back in the mix, while they could have raised the bar had they been more forceful. Having said that, _Villains_ isn't an entirely faceless effort. This band has already put out a full-length debut three years ago and I hope they keep chugging away, because there's certainly a lot of potential here. It just needs more time to develop some character. Brutus have done a good job self-recording and producing _Villains_ but the path to a more original sound requires a higher standard.