• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5

I was excited when Razor announced a new album with an actual release date (I think the earliest rumours I heard were in the mid 2000s, so I had almost given up on a new album ever becoming reality). I had little to no expectations and just went in blind. I wasn't impressed on the first listen, and subsequent 20 or so listens didn't help things, so I put it aside for a few weeks. Back to it now, that's still a sad "nope..."

With all the good thrash out there, I don't know why I have only seen like three negative-ish reviews, with the others practically praising it as the album of the year. That's not uncommon with releases by big-name bands. Either they don't listen to much newer thrash, or they feel obligated because it's Razor? Go figure. One thing I can say for this album, is that it sounds angry. It's all-guns-blazing and heavy as fuck and the vocalist certainly sounds pissed off, maybe just a little too much. Speaking of which, just like MetalMike, I'm not too fond of the "barked shouts" vocal style, despite it being quite effective at conveying the aforementioned angry vibe. It just gets on my nerves. Musically, this is very busy thrash, a little too much for its own good. There's literally nothing that positively grabbed my attention on the album and, once it's over, the only thing I can remember is horrible album closer "King Shit" which uses the word "shit" often enough to use as a laxative—or maybe feel like they're cheering you up while you're on the can. It comes off as kind of juvenile and it's really embarrassing having that come out of your speakers.

If you want good thrash in 2022, look elsewhere. I have all the respect in the world for Razor, a band with several landmark albums, but this just isn't very good. There are dozens of bands doing this better these days, some of which are reviewed on this very site. Look them up.