Stephen
The sophomore release of American young thrashers, Warbringer, keeps getting better and meaner, polished on the veteran hands of Exodus alpha man, Gary Holt, the band still revolving around the classic style of Kreator, Slayer, and Exodus, and I spotted a slight element of death metal pattern experimentation there, especially on the drums section, thanks to the newly-joined hitter, Nic Ritter, that blows a fresh air with his intense double-bass attack.
There's definitely not a dull moment here and they keep cranking a brutal, raging, and explosive music, leaving you no space to breathe, not even a second. While "Jackal" started the album a bit bumpy, the next three songs are big enough to earn this album a bunch of stars. "Living In A Whirlwind" and "Scorched Earth" shown a classic normal tempo with some double-pedal assault occasionally thrown into. "Severed Reality" throttled more speed in the drum section and those tracks are immersed in the ocean of ferocious riffs and lethal solos. "Prey For Death" is another favorite pick of mine played on the corridor of classic thrash, "Shadow From The Tomb" is aggressive and leaned toward death metal with a throw of Bennett's growly vocals and brutal beat. "Senseless Life" featured a dynamic tempo, crazy riffage, tight composition, and in my opinion, is the climax of the album.
Warbringer moves one step forward with "Waking Into Nightmares" but let's hope they keep reinventing their sound in the future to create their own originality without abandoning the roots. For casual fans/newbie, better look for Kreator or Slayer's early effort, but for long time thrash fans, this album could be a neat addition to your shelf.