Three years have passed since the Suicidal Angels swept across the Metal landscape with their latest Thrash hurricane. “Division Of Blood” left nothing but bone splinters and stormed uncompromisingly into the top 100 of the German album charts, just like its predecessors did. For two years, the Greek demolition command has been merciful and only ripped its concert visitors into a roaring inferno. But in 2019, the time has come for the work on the seventh studio album to take shape.
I’ll admit, thrash metal is definitely my forte and as stale as the genre can sometimes get, it also excites me when I hear GOOD thrash music. Greek thrashers Suicidal Angels is a band that came into my radar back when their first album “Eternal Domination” dropped 12 years ago and I’ve been a fan ever since. That album seriously had some of the most jaw dropping thrash pieces I had ever heard, it was aggressive, it was fast, it made even Slayer’s Reign In Blood pale in comparison just on the sheer technicality of the music. The death metal aspect which has since been eradicated on the albums that followed was definitely the defining factor on that whole aggression of the album, it gave the listener the feeling of being hit by a freight train that still left a smile on your face.When I spoke to founding member Nick Melissourgos about that recording, I was surprised to learn it was recorded on tapes and out of studio, a major feat considering the digital age we live in.
The band could have easily left it right there and become one of those enigmatic releases that would forever be completely on it’s own but thankfully the band continued on with new lineup changes and a series of albums including “Sanctify The Darkness” and the brilliant “Dead Again” which further cemented Suicidal Angels as a force to be reckoned with. Their latest album “Years Of Aggression” continues the thrash assault and on hearing the new tracks a few times over now, the general feeling is that this is right up there with some of the best work they have done thus far.
“Endless War” starts things off and it’s a no holds barred thrasher, exactly what you would expect from the Greek act who are unapologetic about their influences and style of precision making thrash. The gear change halfway through is also a trademark of the band and it’s great to see headbanging moments rear it’s head perfectly like this. The old school, heavy metal sound is also something that pops in here and there to give that vintage metal flavor, tracks like “Born Of Hate” and “D.I.V.A.” definitely have that traditional sound to it but melded together with a brutal and tight playing power that has become a staple of the band’s core sound.
For some different stuff, the title track slows things down a bit as does the epic closer “The Sacred Of Dance With Chaos” where winding trails of sludge and down tempo elements become the norm. These dynamics inject some new light into the band and offers a glimpse into the band’s ability to play around with different ideas.
But for the thrashers and headbangers, there’s plenty of the fast stuff as well as some good ol’ chuggers like “Bloody Ground” and “From All The One“, and “Order Of Death” is just plain fun to listen to. “Years Of Aggression” is suitably titled as it definitely captures the best of Suicidal Angels all on the one album. It simply ticks all the right boxes, has lush production while still retaining that raw power and the performance is as tight as ever. If you still haven’t caught on to these guys and you love a bit of thrash, do yourselves a favour and get into this as they are easily one of the top modern thrash bands going right now.
9/10
TRACKLIST
Endless War
Born Of Hate
Years Of Aggression
Bloody Ground
D.I.V.A.
From All The One
Order Of Death
The Root Of Rats
The Sacred Of Dance With Chaos
