Jump to content

New thrash acts?


Barnett03

Recommended Posts

Re: New thrash acts?

That would be the way to do it' date=' but there's very little of it happening. Vektor and Mastery are the only newer thrash bands I can think of that do things their own way instead of being content with hanging out in their idols shadows.[/quote'] Thanks for recommending VEKTOR, man. I just got my copy of "Outer Isolation" in the mail yesterday and this is a great album! The music really conjures that sci-fi/futuristic atmosphere they're going for and they definitely have their own sound. Although I would like to see a bit less of the drawn-out, progressive slow parts and more quick, to-the-point songs, I'm not complaining. They're furthering their own unique style and this is one of the best thrash CD's I've heard in a long time.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: New thrash acts?

I agree, I saw them live in 2007 before anybody knew who they were. I took a roadtrip to Arizona to see Finntroll, but after seeing both bands, I just had to buy Vektor merch, even over the band I had driven 800 miles to see. Happy to see they're getting some credit now, I would rather hear their original take on progressive thrash than the million generic Exodus/D.R.I./Slayer worshippers posing as thrashers for the last few years.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: New thrash acts? haven't heard Vektor yet I don't think but I will have to check them out at some point, progressive thrash seems like a very interesting idea, I can say that there aren't nearly enough thrash bands willing to try something different, for example last year my neighbor put together a thrash band that I went to see at their first gig and they sounded like an Anthrax clone with a touch of Overkill in the vocals, I left after about three songs because it just wasn't interesting enough for me, fortunately for the thrash genre that band has since broken up and they never got round to recording an EP or album

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: New thrash acts?

haven't heard Vektor yet I don't think but I will have to check them out at some point' date=' progressive thrash seems like a very interesting idea, I can say that there aren't nearly enough thrash bands willing to try something different, for example last year my neighbor put together a thrash band that I went to see at their first gig and they sounded like an Anthrax clone with a touch of Overkill in the vocals, I left after about three songs because it just wasn't interesting enough for me, fortunately for the thrash genre that band has since broken up and they never got round to recording an EP or album[/quote'] That's the problem, nobody is willing to try anything different. Retro black, death, and (some) doom bands keep it a bit more fresh, using the same influences to create something maybe slightly different, but most retro heavy and thrash metal is just going through the motions.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: New thrash acts? yeah I've actually gone back through some riffs I recorded (because just writing them down doesn't really help me remember them) and I scrapped a bunch of them that I thought were too similar to what's already out there, when I do put my band together (and it is slowly starting to happen, I may have found a bass player) I want it to be something which sounds unique, or at the very least unusual, I've got a rough idea of what I want my band to be, I'm thinking of combining elements of power, progressive and thrash metal together, I just want to expand my thrash collection a little and build some more knowledge of prog first to see if it can work

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: New thrash acts?

from what I've heard of retro thrash bands I'd have to agree' date=' I think a better way to go would be combining the best elements of thrash with other sub-genres like progressive, death or black metal[/quote'] Or you could just play thrash metal without following EXACTLY in the footsteps of the bands you're influenced by. I don't have a problem with things that some people call "generic" if it's well done, but when you're aspiring to be just like Exodus, you're going to fail, aspire to be something else or even just a band influenced by Exodus among others and there's no reason why you shouldn't succeed.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...

Re: New thrash acts? I have no problem with thrash bands IF THEY'RE ADDING SOMETHING NEW, it's generic, boring thrash that's been done a thousand times I dislike, bands like Evile and Mucipal Waste that could be so much better then they are in particular annoy me, I feel this way about every genre of metal though if a band can't contribute something new to the equation what's the point of playing, I look at it as the role of a musician to push themselves to the limit of their capabilities in an attempt to broaden the horizons of a particular musical style, and I get the feeling many of the retro thrash bands simply aren't doing that, you have to look elsewhere in thrash to find bands that are willing to push the boundaries

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: New thrash acts?

I have no problem with thrash bands IF THEY'RE ADDING SOMETHING NEW' date=' it's generic, boring thrash that's been done a thousand times I dislike, bands like Evile and Mucipal Waste that could be so much better then they are in particular annoy me, I feel this way about every genre of metal though if a band can't contribute something new to the equation what's the point of playing, I look at it as the role of a musician to push themselves to the limit of their capabilities in an attempt to broaden the horizons of a particular musical style, and I get the feeling many of the retro thrash bands simply aren't doing that, you have to look elsewhere in thrash to find bands that are willing to push the boundaries[/quote'] I get what you're saying, but if a band is writing great songs I'll listen, regardless of whether or not they are breaking any new ground. There's tons of thrash clone bands from the '80s that I like as well, so it's not really a new phenomenon, a scene being flooded by imitators. We're just more keenly aware of it because of the internet. I saw Warbringer a couple weeks ago, banged my head and slammed people around in the pit, hung out with the band afterwards and had a great time. Coming up with new takes on metal is great and I love bands that do that, but sometimes I just want to fuckin' rage, and bands like the ones being discussed do that for me.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: New thrash acts? I don't mind a retro band that adds a little flare to things, you know puts their own little spin on it, but I just can't get into straight up clone bands, If I want to see or listen to a band that sounds EXACTLY like Exodus I'll listen to or go and see Exodus, it's sort of like why buy home brand if the name brand costs the same price

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: New thrash acts?

I don't mind a retro band that adds a little flare to things' date=' you know puts their own little spin on it, but I just can't get into straight up clone bands, If I want to see or listen to a band that sounds EXACTLY like Exodus I'll listen to or go and see Exodus, it's sort of like why buy home brand if the name brand costs the same price[/quote'] Yeah, that's true. I'm not really into bands that sound exactly like other bands. I do tend to prefer the ones who are instantly recognizable as whoever they are. I don't really think Warbringer sounds like Exodus other than the obvious superficial comparisons, nor Havok like...I dunno, whoever. One thing I don't like at all is when bands name their band after a song title of another band they sound similar to. That's always annoyed me, and that's not a recent phenomenon. Bonded By Blood is a great band, but come on, guys... It's one thing for me to choose a Judas Priest song as a forum username, but....and so on.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: New thrash acts? I also like several bands in the so-called "New Wave of traditional heavy metal" movement, although I don't like as many of those as I do the new thrash bands. Some suck, some are great. Portrait's "Crimen Laesae Majestatis Divinae" is probably my favorite album of 2011. First one sounded way too much like King Diamond/MF, but they really came into their own with the latest one.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: New thrash acts? now that is annoying, I'm waiting for a band to come along and name themselves something like Testament 2, or use their favourite bands name backwards like Htedagem (Megadeth) and when it happens I'm going to find them, lock them in a room and not let them out until they've 1. come up with a better name and 2. put their own spin on the style of their influence I'm yet to hear any bands from the trad. metal revival, I've got a lot on my plate so to speak right now amassing sizeable collections of power, progressive, gothic and doom metal, expanding my thrash collection and restoring/expanding my death and black metal collections but once that's done I'll have to check out the trad. revival

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: New thrash acts?

now that is annoying, I'm waiting for a band to come along and name themselves something like Testament 2, or use their favourite bands name backwards like Htedagem (Megadeth) and when it happens I'm going to find them, lock them in a room and not let them out until they've 1. come up with a better name and 2. put their own spin on the style of their influence I'm yet to hear any bands from the trad. metal revival, I've got a lot on my plate so to speak right now amassing sizeable collections of power, progressive, gothic and doom metal, expanding my thrash collection and restoring/expanding my death and black metal collections but once that's done I'll have to check out the trad. revival
I'd avoid a great deal of it, but Portrait's last one was great.
And I didn't like White Wizzard at first, but their "Flying Tigers" album is really good.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: New thrash acts?

first one sounded very power metal influenced' date=' and the vocalist in the second one sounded remarkably similar to the vocalist from Rush or maybe that's just my ears not working properly lol[/quote'] I hadn't really considered the Rush thing. The vocalist to me sounds quite a bit like the guy from Riot. And the Portrait song, yeah, I suppose there's some power metal in there, that being one of their faster songs, but there's tempo changes all throughout the album, it really is more of a traditional sound. The production has a very eerie, dark magical vibe similar to early Mercyful Fate. Maybe this is a more accurate representation. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKHx5MpC ... re=related
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: New thrash acts? It's not so much that newer thrash bands aren't doing anything different, it's that they're striving to recapture something great from the 80's and are placing all kinds of restrictions upon themselves to achieve a vintage sound. Thrash in the 80's was about writing great songs while pushing the limits of technicality, brutality, and speed, and they weren't influenced by a bunch of self imposed bullshit limitations. Create something for yourself, if you want to play music like Exodus, do it the way that you would do Exodus, because you won't succeed at trying to play just like them.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: New thrash acts?

It's not so much that newer thrash bands aren't doing anything different' date=' it's that they're striving to recapture something great from the 80's and are placing all kinds of restrictions upon themselves to achieve a vintage sound. Thrash in the 80's was about writing great songs while pushing the limits of technicality, brutality, and speed, and they weren't influenced by a bunch of self imposed bullshit limitations. Create something for yourself, if you want to play music like Exodus, do it the way that you would do Exodus, because you won't succeed at trying to play just like them.[/quote'] That makes sense, but still, only a handful of bands in the 80s were pushing the envelope. Those are the ones everybody remembers now. There was a whole scene around that where lots of bands sounded very close to each other musically. I think that the best bands of this new wave of thrash will grow with subsequent albums, and the others will be forgotten, eventually. I think if a band like Havok pushed themselves they could accomplish great things, and they very well may. Their first and second albums are worlds apart, IMO, as far as songwriting goes.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Re: New thrash acts?

I'm not saying that all 80's thrash metal bands were Dark Angel, Watchtower, or Kreator, all of whom pushed the envelope in different ways, but you could at least tell the difference between bands that were sonically similar. At the start of various movements, the borders for that sound are not set and are still being explored to find each band's niche. I can't really think of any direct soundalikes from around the time of any given subgenre's inception or golden age, but how many bands can you think of nowadays that sound like Helloween, Suffocation, Darkthrone, Exodus, or Dream Theater? I'm not saying that there can't be good new thrash metal bands (or bands from any genre, for that matter), I'm just saying that earlier bands had an idea of what they wanted to do, and did it in a way that worked best for them, which made them successful to varying degrees. New bands can also be successful if they don't have rigid rules or definitions in their minds of what they have to play or sound like, if you play something that you don't completely feel, or do it in a certain way only to sound like somebody else and not yourself, you're probably wasting your time. This is not to say that you can't take influence from anything you listen to, but you should keep as just that, an influence, something that influences you to make something else instead of a mold from which to replicate your sound from.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.


  • Join Metal Forum

    joinus-home.jpg

  • Our picks

    • Whichever tier of thrash metal you consigned Sacred Reich back in the 80's/90's they still had their moments.  "Ignorance" & "Surf Nicaragura" did a great job of establishing the band, whereas "The American Way" just got a little to comfortable and accessible (the title track grates nowadays) for my ears.  A couple more records better left forgotten about and then nothing for twenty three years.  2019 alone has now seen three releases from Phil Rind and co.  A live EP, a split EP with Iron Reagan and now a full length.

      Notable addition to the ranks for the current throng of releases is former Machine Head sticksman, Dave McClean.  Love or hate Machine Head, McClean is a more than capable drummer and his presence here is felt from the off with the opening and title track kicking things off with some real gusto.  'Divide & Conquer' and 'Salvation' muddle along nicely, never quite reaching any quality that would make my balls tingle but comfortable enough.  The looming build to 'Manifest Reality' delivers a real punch when the song starts proper.  Frenzied riffs and drums with shots of lead work to hold the interest.


      There's a problem already though (I know, I am such a fucking mood hoover).  I don't like Phil's vocals.  I never had if I am being honest.  The aggression to them seems a little forced even when they are at their best on tracks like 'Manifest Reality'.  When he tries to sing it just feels weak though ('Salvation') and tracks lose real punch.  Give him a riffy number such as 'Killing Machine' and he is fine with the Reich engine (probably a poor choice of phrase) up in sixth gear.  For every thrashy riff there's a fair share of rock edged, local bar act rhythm aplenty too.

      Let's not poo-poo proceedings though, because overall I actually enjoy "Awakening".  It is stacked full of catchy riffs that are sticky on the old ears.  Whilst not as raw as perhaps the - brilliant - artwork suggests with its black and white, tattoo flash sheet style design it is enjoyable enough.  Yes, 'Death Valley' & 'Something to Believe' have no place here, saved only by Arnett and Radziwill's lead work but 'Revolution' is a fucking 80's thrash heyday throwback to the extent that if you turn the TV on during it you might catch a new episode of Cheers!

      3/5
      • Reputation Points

      • 10 replies
    • I
      • Reputation Points

      • 2 replies
    • https://www.metalforum.com/blogs/entry/52-vltimas-something-wicked-marches-in/
      • Reputation Points

      • 3 replies

    • https://www.metalforum.com/blogs/entry/48-candlemass-the-door-to-doom/
      • Reputation Points

      • 2 replies
    • Full length number 19 from overkill certainly makes a splash in the energy stakes, I mean there's some modern thrash bands that are a good two decades younger than Overkill who can only hope to achieve the levels of spunk that New Jersey's finest produce here.  That in itself is an achievement, for a band of Overkill's stature and reputation to be able to still sound relevant four decades into their career is no mean feat.  Even in the albums weaker moments it never gets redundant and the energy levels remain high.  There's a real sense of a band in a state of some renewed vigour, helped in no small part by the addition of Jason Bittner on drums.  The former Flotsam & Jetsam skinsman is nothing short of superb throughout "The Wings of War" and seems to have squeezed a little extra out of the rest of his peers.

      The album kicks of with a great build to opening track "Last Man Standing" and for the first 4 tracks of the album the Overkill crew stomp, bash and groove their way to a solid level of consistency.  The lead work is of particular note and Blitz sounds as sneery and scathing as ever.  The album is well produced and mixed too with all parts of the thrash machine audible as the five piece hammer away at your skull with the usual blend of chugging riffs and infectious anthems.  


      There are weak moments as mentioned but they are more a victim of how good the strong tracks are.  In it's own right "Distortion" is a solid enough - if not slightly varied a journey from the last offering - but it just doesn't stand up well against a "Bat Shit Crazy" or a "Head of a Pin".  As the album draws to a close you get the increasing impression that the last few tracks are rescued really by some great solos and stomping skin work which is a shame because trimming of a couple of tracks may have made this less obvious. 

      4/5
      • Reputation Points

      • 4 replies
×
×
  • Create New...