UMUR
"Pray" is the 2nd full-length studio album by US death/thrash metal act Solstice. The album was released through SPV/Steamhammer in 1995. Solstice was formed in 1990 by guitarists Dennis Muñoz and Rob Barret (also lead vocals) and drummer Alex Marquez. They were joined by bassist Mark van Erp for the recording of their debut full-length studio album "Solstice (1992)", but shortly after the release of that album Rob Barret and Alex Marquez were recruited by Malevolent Creation for the recording of their second full-length studio album "Retribution (1992)" and Solstice was put on hold. Alex Marquez stayed with Malevolent Creation for the recording of "Stillborn (1993)" before being part of reforming Solstice, but Rob Barret didn´t return to the ranks, as he was asked to join Cannibal Corpse in 1993 and accepted the offer. Barret is replaced here by guitarist/lead vocalist Christian Rudes. Bassist Mark van Erp didn´t take part in the reunion either and he is replaced here by Garrett Scott.
While only half of the lineup, who recorded the debut, are therefore part of the lineup on "Pray", the music on the album still sounds like Solstice. It´s still brutal thrash tinged death metal, featuring a decent amount of tempo changes, crushingly heavy riffing, fast precision drumming, and a brutal growling yet intelligible vocalist. As such not that different from the music offered on the debut, but maybe a notch more brutal. I´ve already mentioned Malevolent Creation a couple of times above, and it´s not only members that the two acts share. Musicially there are also clear references to Malevolent Creation in Solstice music. I hear some Demolition Hammer in the music too (which is a band Alex Marquez would also record with).
The musicianship are on a high level on all positions. These guys are a tight playing unit with a clear vision of how their music should sound. The heavy and meaty sound production helps bring out the best in the tracks too. The only issue with "Pray" is probably that the material are a bit one-dimensional and as a consequence the tracks generally aren´t easy to tell apart. As with most releases this relentlessly brutal and musically conservative, that´s nothing out of the ordinary though. For what it is, "Pray" ultimately is a very effective, raw and energetic death/thrash metal release by Solstice. It didn´t exactly make waves back then though and the band soon disbanded (they´ve since reunited). A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.