UMUR
"Time to Rethink" is a demo cassette tape release by German thrash metal act Battlefield. The demo was independently released in 1990. It´s the band´s first out of two demo tapes released in 1990. Battlefield formed in 1987 and released the "We Come to Fight" EP that same year, but they had to return to releasing demos as they weren´t able to secure a label deal. The two 1990 demos lead to the band being signed to Rising Sun Productions for the release of their debut full-length studio album "Still and Ever Again" (1991). Not before a lead vocalist change had occured though, as "Time to Rethink" would be the last Battlefield release to feature Cornelia Ernst before she was replaced by Tanja Ivenz.
"Time to Rethink" is an incredible intense, fast-paced, and energetic technical thrash metal release, which shows great development of Battlefield´s sound since the release of "We Come to Fight" (1987). Ernst sings more clean vocals than she did on the 1987 EP, but she can still deliver rough staccato styled thrash metal vocals when it is called for. The music has become quite technical and relatively complex and eclectic. It´s definitely not straight forward thrash metal anymore. One of the main attracations is still the intense thrash metal riffs though, but this time around there are just a lot more experimental ideas thrown in, acoustic breaks, and more clean vocal parts.
Considering that "Time to Rethink" is a demo recording, the sound production is decent and you´re able to hear all details of the music. Upon conclusion "Time to Rethink" is a relatively bold display of new songwriting ideas and playing skills from Battlefield, but personally I think I prefer the slightly more straight forward thrash metal style of the "We Come to Fight" (1987) EP. The experiments aren´t always incorporated in the most sophisticated manner and they have a tendency to disrupt the flow of the songs. A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.