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Every now and then, something comes as a complete surprise. For Metal fans like me, these surprises often come in the form of Metal-infested releases (although my wife also deserves some credit for surprising me quite often, positively, of course, but please do NOT ask for specific details, okay?)

From Tel-Aviv, Israel comes Hammercult (a pretty neat band name, by the way), the band that won the Wacken Metal Battle in 2011. That's a quite achievement in itself, considering the many bands take part in that competition every year.

Hammercult's second album, Steelcrusher, has now been released by legendary German label SPV GmbH, and it is a fine display of these Israeli fellows' skill in creating catchy and powerful Death/Thrash music. I am amazed by the amount of great musicianship they have in the band. There are a few, tiny neo-classical elements within Hammercult's sound (especially in the solo) that may remind people of Children of Bodom. In fact, I would say a combination of C.O.B. and fellow Israelites Melechesh minus the keyboards and other unusual instruments, closely approximates Hammercult's sound. They are aggressive, pleasingly hysteric, melodic when needed and simply kick ass with their instrumental skills on Steelcrusher. There's just nothing in their sound that irritates or annoys me. Hammercult have a pretty fresh approach to their combination of relentless Thrash and Death Metal, which also has some Punk feel to it.

Hammercult's Steelcrusher has been one of the most positive surprises for me thus far in 2014 and I am quite sure they have had the same impact on those of you who have heard the album. Definitely keep your eyes open for these guys in the future, as they may still have some aces hidden in their sleeves.