Thrash

Aggressor — Beyond All Reckoning

Posted on Tuesday, March 20th, 2012 at 5:03 pm.

Originally written for Exclaim.

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Aggressor are a thrash metal band based in Toronto, ON, and Beyond All Reckoning is their fourth full-length release. The group feature brothers Brian Stephenson (ex-Annihilator) and Chris Stephenson (Cauldron) on vocals/guitar and drums, respectively, as well as Shotgun Cure‘s Harut Savchenko on lead guitar and Diemonds‘ Daniel Dekay on bass. While Aggressor situate themselves within the thrash renaissance still sweeping heavy metal, they succeed where many have failed because they’re not confined by it. While they certainly employ a very …

Necromantheon — Rise, Vulcan Spectre

Posted on Friday, March 9th, 2012 at 3:23 pm.

Originally written for About Heavy Metal.

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Thrashers Nekromantheon are based in Kolbotn, Norway. Founded in 2005, they have since released a solo EP/demo, We’re Rotting, in 2007; two split EPs, one with Abigail in 2008 and another with Audiopain in 2010; and their debut full-length, Divinity Of Death, which was also released in 2010.

Anyone familiar with their previous albums will know exactly what they are getting with Rise, Vulcan Spectre: straightforward, traditional thrash metal, played without guile or pretence. Nekromantheon don’t …

Ghoul — Transmission Zero.

Posted on Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012 at 6:39 pm.

Originally written for Exclaim!

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Oakland-based horror lovers Ghoul have returned with Transmission Zero, their first full-length album in five years. The members of Ghoul conceal their identities behind masks and maintain grotesque alter egos, with names like Cremator. Their music is brutal and abject, rooted in an aesthetic of disgust and revulsion. They are also extremely self-referential and now revel in taking themselves seriously. There’s a sophisticated sense of humour mixed in with the splattering gore, but what does this sound like? Ghoul produce …

Evile — Five Serpent’s Teeth

Posted on Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012 at 12:00 am.

Originally written for Hellbound.

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Five Serpent’s Teeth is the third full-length studio album that Huddersfield, UK-based Evile have released with Earache. Evile are a significant force behind the popular thrash revival; they’re also a band known for their energetic live shows and the strong online personalities of their members, who are all active on social media (especially guitarist Ol Drake). Their visibility and activity level have garnered a great deal of attention for supporting neo-thrash, and their following is far from undeserved.

Five Serpent’s Teeth is a marked improvement over …

Tags: Album Reviews, Metal, Thrash