Year: 2025
Label: self-released

No, this isn’t the Italian cult metal band Bulldozer nor any of the other numerous bands of the same name, nor Spanish Bulldozer BCN – this is The Bulldozer from Finland. As far as I can tell, there are no other Bulldozers using this exact form, but still, the risk of mixing bands up must be real.

Oi! is the name of the game for these bootboys from the capital region of Finland. This four track EP is a pretty short and sweet little package, aptly showcasing what kind of ruck & roll these guys have on offer.

Clocking in at a mere 11 minutes, Battle Scars is a bite sized meal. Smartly, each of the four tracks is different from the others, displaying the breadth of The Bulldozer’s repertoire. As such, it is a nice little calling card.

First track Time is a straight up oi! punk rock track: aggressive, snarling vocals, a catchy and melodic chorus, and some pretty classic oi! riffing. Doom Bar continues in a similar way, although toning down the violence for a bit of classic 80’s oi swagger. There’s a bit of reggae to be heard in the rhythm and the bass line, but it’s still a punk track above all.

Not so with I’m Done. The third track jumps head first into ska punk territory. It’s a tricky landscape littered with the scattered remains of throngs of shitty bands and shitty records. Luckily, The Bulldozer manage to avoid pitfalls and the result is something almost remarkable: a ska/punk hybrid track I can honesty confess to liking.

Rounding up things is Breathtakingly Ordinary Man, which brings the EP back to where it started: no hold barred punk rock aggro. Starting off with a football chant, this is another track in a very classic oi! style. And probably my favourite off the EP.

This is an EP that leaves one hungry for more. There’s nothing original or forward thinking in The Bulldozer’s music; nah, it’s just oi!, pure and simple. But it’s also a beautifully nostalgic, old school sound: not too much of distortion and oomph in the guitars; no hardcore; no metal; but still plenty of hard-as-nails attitude and sound. Think something like The Business meets Condemned 84.

For people into oi!, it’s a sound that’s hard not to like.

And as such, this is an EP that is hard not to like.

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