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Review Summary: A successful modern take on old-school thrash. In a time and era where almost everything in music has been played, innovation is a concept that is very hard to find. Thankfully for Suicidal Angels, thrash metal is one of those genres that originality plays a reduced role. One can only imagine that when they were young, these guys’ walls were filled with posters of Show No Mercy, Pleasure to Kill and Agent Orange as these are the Greek outfit’s primary influences.
Having said the above, the proximity of Suicidal Angels’ sound to Slayer, Kreator and Sodom – among others – might probably distance some who seek for more adventurous song structure and a bit of innovation. However, listeners who get past that will find that Division of Blood is energetic, fun and quite addictive. Most tracks are aggressive but at the same time possess a sense of melody and groove. Moreover, the lack of innovation is balanced by the sheer number and quality of riffs. If there’s a single highlight on here, it’s the guitar playing which is the backbone of the album and apart from numerous riffs we are treated with a few typical yet well-placed and greatly-executed solos. The song structure is consistent throughout with tempo changes on every song and each one of them is based on a catchy and memorable riff.
Album opener “Capital of War” is quite representative of the whole, with its furious start, slower mid-section, solo, and return to the original rhythm. Of course there are variations, such as “Front Gate” which is one of the slower tracks on here but eventually picks up, “Image of the Serpent” and “Set the Cities On Fire” which are fast from start to finish or “Of Thy Shall Bring the Light” that is midtempo all over and features an unnecessary, almost 7-minute part where there’s no sound at all, before the song ends; a technique that is far less interesting today than in the ‘90s. The above are complemented by a fitting old-school production, vocals that might bring to some listeners’ minds the lower register of Tom Araya and a drummer who most likely worships and has studied well Dave Lombardo. Finally, the bass could have been a bit higher in the mix, like on many thrash metal LPs.
Ultimately, how one perceives this album, depends on whether they can digest Suicidal Angels’ striking similarities to the aforementioned bands. At the same time, the band’s songwriting and execution is at such a level that Division of Blood is a very entertaining album and a great alternative for when you feel you want to listen to a modern take on the classics.
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Album Rating: 3.5
This is a very fun listen, if you don't mind the lack of innovation.
Full album: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qpt9KLRmqQk
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good review as always manosg. mindpos
band is eh. more of the same
"Thankfully for Suicidal Angels, thrash metal is one of those genres that originality plays a reduced role."
i take with issue with this, not in theory but in practice. new revival thrash just doesn't have the same feel and energy that even more derivative b-tier underground stuff from the 80s and early 90s had. even bands like assassin or cyclone temple or defiance shit all over this
it's beyond recycled and the production doesn't suit the style
| | | Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off
Good review, mental pos.
New album is definitely better than its predecessor, and better overall than anything the band has ever issued.
Lead guitars take no prisoners.
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really? :/
the couple of tracks i checked out were as thoroughly unimpressive as i expected tbh
| | | Album Rating: 3.5
Cheers guys!
My first thought was "Slayer worship done properly". Will I jam this album in a couple of years? Eh, probably not. But I've been jamming it non-stop since Friday and it's a very entertaining balls out thrash LP.
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I can never get enough thrash, I'll check this out.
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idk, as a huge thrash dude the painful and sad conclusion that i've come to is that you're simply much better off exhuming obscure old school shit than trying to listen to revival thrash bands, with very few (and fairly obvious) exceptions.
speaking of which, if either of you manos or voivod is interested, i did run into a pretty good new thrash band recently and added it to the site. seems like they've disbanded after only one release, but that release is pretty sweet imo. could use a look at and maybe review
check out: children - hard times hanging at the edge of the world [2009]
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It's the colourful album covers that attract me, not even joking.
| | | Album Rating: 3.5
Thanks for the rec, park. I'll give it a go.
| | | Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off
@parksungjoon
Thanks for the rec.
For the last couple albums (the new one included), Suicidal Angels are trying to make their craft more elaborate; while listening to this one, Heathen came to mind, mostly due to the guitar leads.
However, the Greeks are nowhere near Heathen in terms of arrangements and musicianship, rather they are still/rather inexcusably attached to the norms that got them this far.
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yeah idk i listened to half of this and was thoroughly bored honestly.
i find myself siding more and more with KILL in that new thrash simply isn't that interesting or fun for the most part. i also hate the clean production (or at least the overproduced drums) that most of these bands go for these days.
| | | Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off
Don't get me wrong, Suicidal Angels is a great live band, but when it comes to domestic listening, their albums are between 3-3.5 tops.
as for new and interesting thrash metal outfits, there are quite a few imho (thrash, not death/thrash, black/thrash, progressive/thrash etc.).
Mortal Strike, Morti Viventi, Alkoholizer, Blackning, Exarsis, Biotoxic Warfare, Angelus Apatrida, Distillator, Holycide, Nightbreed, Harmpit, Alcoholator, Phrenetix, Aratic, Dangerous, Katakomb, The Gash, Ultra-Violence, Bio-Cancer, Speedtrap, Panic (USA-PA), Inculter, Endless Recovery, Shrapnel (UK) etc.
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Great review man. Not sure if I'll check this out any time soon though.
| | | Album Rating: 3.5
Thanks des. No worries, take your time.
Agreed Voivod. I'd never suggest that these guys are as good as old school thrash but when you need something else than the same old bands, they're a good choice.
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well, i've found that the list of "same old bands" is surprisingly extensive once you get past the mainstream ones and the aspids and the demolition hammers that are meme'd here on sputnik:
atrocity, torture, helstar, liege lord, turbo, laaz rockit, forced entry, it just goes on and on
but yeah these guys are definitely not bad, a lot less annoying than something like crisix or fueled by fire
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Nice read, manos. I must've heard some song from Bloodbath at a point.
| | | Album Rating: 3.5
Thanks Evo!
Good point, park. The "same old" list is as extensive as one's knowledge on any subject. And again, if you ask me which I prefer, I'd say old school. Modern thrash just doesn't have the same soul. Same goes with the blues, black metal, folk, etc. But every once in a while (not too often) you just want to listen to a product of our times and this album does it for me ;)
| | | Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off
Speaking of recs, here's some really solid Slayer (death)/thrash from Austria.
Deathstorm - Blood Beneath The Crypts
http://deathstorm.bandcamp.com/album/blood-beneath-the-crypts
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digging this a bit more, cheers voivod
| | | Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off
^^Don't mention it man, also check - like whenever - the names listed in a previous post of mine, there's great thrash in the underground.
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