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First Tantara worked the forge, and now Critical Solution, a 4-piece act from Porsgrunn, Norway, is molding the same kind of steel that Metallica once held tightly in their hands during their prime.

Critical Solution's debut album, Evil Never Dies, is a killer piece of work in terms of their attempt to capture the things that were so essential in Metallica's early sound and put them on top of the Metal world. Critical Solution obviously isn't ashamed about trying to sound like early Metallica, not one bit. The riffs, the solos, and the song structures are classic Metallica and to top it off, Christer Slettebø on vocals (and guitar) sounds quite a lot like James Hetfield in his mid twenties. If Critical Solution intended their debut album to sound like a missing link between Master of Puppets and ... and Justice for All, then they hit the bull's eye. And I don't mean to diminish these young Norwegians' efforts to make a solid, strongly Metallica-tinged record as there's still quite a lot of their own identity to be found on the album. There are a few moments that tend to lean more toward the Bay Area Thrash Metal scene, providing a bit of unique charm and preventing Critical Solution from being just another Metallica clone.

11 originals plus 3 cover songs ("Speed King" by Deep Purple, "Killed by Death" by Motörhead and "Seek & Destroy" by The Million Dollar Wide Smiles) are what Critical Solution has on offer on this very promising debut. Produced by no less than Andy LaRocque, the sound is top-notch. Now, having said all this, you should be curious enough to check them out by yourself.