UMUR
"Destined For Extinction" is the 2nd full-length studio album by US thrash metal act Blessed Death. The album was released through Roadrunner Records in 1987. Blessed Death was formed in Old Bridge, New Jersey in 1984 and released a couple of demos before being signed and releasing their debut full-length studio album "Kill or Be Killed (1985)". The lineup who recorded the debut album are intact on "Destined For Extinction".
The music on the album is relatively raw thrash metal with the occasional nod towards speed metal. The scale has shifted since "Kill or Be Killed (1985)" though and "Destined For Extinction" only features few speed metal elements and is more or less a straight thrash metal album. The debut was a greatly energetic and fiercely aggressive listen, and while "Destined For Extinction" is slightly more sophisticated it´s still a pretty savage release. Lead vocalist Larry Portelli has changed his vocal style slightly since the debut album and while he still produces some pretty wild piercing screams, he is generally a bit more raw sounding here than the case was on the debut. The band I´m mostly reminded of when listening to "Destined For Extinction" is probably "Darkness Descends (1986)"-era Dark Angel but without the same punch and distinct sound.
The material are generally a bit more creative than on the more straight forward sounding debut album, but that doesn´t necessarily mean it´s more intriguing. In fact very few of the tracks stand out or are especially memorable. The rather murky sound production doesn´t exactly help the material to shine either. The musicianship are as such on a decent level and the identical twin rhythm section of Kevin and Chris Powelson still drive the music forward in a charming raw fashion, so there are still assets on the album that keep it from failing too badly. Still it´s not exactly the step up from the debut one could have hoped for, and a 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.