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Conjuring up a storm of rage (I just had to) with their debut full-length, the Italians Ragestorm put forth their brand of death/thrash metal for all to hear. Already having some demos and an EP under their belt it seems the band have been at their sound for a good few years now, which is surprising given the juvenile quality of the material across The Thin Line Between Hope And Ruin.

Whilst I think there might be some potential at least somewhere with Ragestorm, their vocal approach kills it. I've honestly found the album a chore to sit through. Marke's yappy delivery hurts my ears, and gives the music a distinct metalcore/post-hardcore vibe, and furthers the aforementioned juvenile quality. Just listen to the likes of "Debt Ritual" or the frankly ridiculous "Moloch" to see what I mean about the vocals.

Couple this with the elements of the band that verge on core to begin with and we're getting into extremely awry territory. The riffs for the most part are from the Slaughter Of The Soul handbook, and despite a decent, slicing guitar tone, fail to generate anything in the way of excitement on this end. It's when they decide to throw in a sodden chugging riff, or breakdown that Ragestorm really start to fall apart. It's a shame as numbers like "Acid Tears" start off fairly decent with cool enough riffs, but then the vocals proceed to defecate all over it. Oh, and what's with the electronic track "Hari Seldon's Speech"? I'm at a loss.

Admittedly the latter half of the album is decent, with the band focusing more on the songwriting, and even the vocals settling into less offensive territory, it's just a shame you have to sit through the sordid first half. Ragestorm might well appeal to you if you're into yappy, snappy, guttural vocals, or if post-Slaughter Of The Soul riffs put a smile on your face. I unfortunately can't really stomach a full listen to the album; to my ears this just isn't all that good. The band can play, particularly the guitarists, but they've got a ways to go if they want to be taken serious as a death metal band.