Artillery: My Blood

OK, I think I need to just accept the fact that so many of the veteran thrash acts from the 80's and early 90's are experiencing some sort of a renaissance these days, as one after another have been releasing killer material the last few years that rivals or surpasses anthing they have done previously. Denmark's Artillery surprised the world with 2009's When Death Comes, and now two years later are back with the equally powerful My Blood, their sixth studio release overall.

When a CD kicks off with a track as blistering as "Mi Sangre (The Blood Song)", you know you are in for a good ride. This 7+ minute gem delivers all that is great about classic thrash metal; massive riffs, relentless rhythms, aggressive vocals, and plenty of attitude. Soren Adamsen is fitting right in on the lead vocals, spewing plenty of angst on the raging "Monster", a complex burner with plenty of intricate riffs and solos from Michael & Morten Stutzer. The brothers lay down some tasty Egyptian styled guitar riffs on the crushing "Dark Days", and the band dive into Exodus/Heathen territory on the blazing thrash of "Death Is an Illusion". A great changeup here is the atmospheric, melodic rocker "Ain't Giving In", which sounds like something you'd find on a power metal album, but very well done with Adamsen's vocals taking on cleaner, higher pitched register. There's even some progressive thrash on "Warrior Blood", complete with acoustic guitar at the intro and plenty of complex riffs throughout. Those acoustic guitars return on the fine "End of Eternity", another textured song that mixes thrash with power & progressive metal styles quite nicely.

Production on My Blood is crisp and powerful, and honestly there's not a bad track on the CD, just plenty of kick ass metal songs that deliver on all fronts. Now with 2 killer releases in a row after a long hiatus, it's about time that Artillery start to get mentioned in the same conversations as Exodus, Overkill, Megadeth, Heathen, Kreator, Destruction, Testament, and all the other thrash bands from the classic period who have returned with a vengeance over the last ten years. Highly recommended!

Track Listing
01. Mi Sangre (The Blood Song)
02. Monster
03. Dark Days
04. Death Is An Illusion
05. Ain't Giving In
06. Prelude To Madness
07. Thrasher
08. Warrior Blood
09. Concealed In The Dark
10. End Of Eternity
11. The Great

Added: June 16th 2011
Reviewer: Pete Pardo
Score:
Related Link: Band Website
Hits: 3548
Language: english

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