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In preparation for their 16th full-length (out later in 2019, hopefully), thrash metal legends Sodom put out a couple of new tracks and a live version of a cut from their classic Agent Orange album on the EP Partisan. Founding member/singer/bassist Tom Angelripper dumped the entire lineup that recorded their last album, the ass-kicking Decision Day, and has brought back Agent Orange-era guitarist Frank Blackfire along with second guitarist Yorck Segatz and drummer Husky, both new to the Sodom camp.

New songs "Partisan" and "Conflagration" pick up where the band left off on Decision Day so even though much of the band is new, they haven't missed a beat. Angelripper's harsh shouts are intact and the band sounds tighter than ever as they rampage through the crushing riffs and solos. "Tired and Red", originally on Agent Orange and included here in a nod to Blackfire who played on the original version, is decent in the live setting but sounds just a hair at odds with the crisp, fierce original cuts.

I was worried that changing the band so dramatically would be disastrous, but my fears appear to be unfounded. If Partisan is any indication, Sodom's next album should be another winner for the German "Big Four" stalwarts.