You may not know the name, but you should recognize the members-Dave Ellefson (Megadeth) on bass, Stet Howland (WASP) on drums, guitarist Peter Scheithauer (Killing Machine), and singer Todd Barnes (13-A), all veterans of the heavy rock and metal scene for quite some time. Temple of Brutality is the name of this union, and their brand new release is titled Lethal Agenda, a fitting name indeed for this album.
The music here is firmly rooted in 80's thrash and classic metal, and there is a very strong Pantera feel as well, especially in the guitar riffs of Scheithauer, whose evil tone drips with venom on tracks like "Art Of War", "Hate Machine", "Beating The Man", and the killer title track. Most of the songs are in the 3-4 minute range, so overall there's not a lot of material here, but they do make it count as at least half the songs are very solid. The rest, are for the most part "by the numbers" metal with few surprises, and you just get the feeling that there could have been more brought to the table. In addition, the vocals of Barnes are kind of gutteral and sound a tad out of place in some spots.
I'm sure, as with any relatively new band, there are bound to be growing pains. Many of the tools are already in place here for Temple of Brutality, but I think certain aspects are a little out of synch. For one, the name of the band leads you to believe that this album should contain some "brutal" metal-well, not really. It's heavy, I'll give them that, but we've all heard much heavier. The lead vocals of Barnes are actually better suited for a band that's much more extreme than the finished product turned out to be. Still, Lethal Agenda is a solid debut from this "super group", and shows some promise that hopefully will be realized in the years to come.
Track Listing
1. Lethal Agenda
2. Hammer
3. Already Dead
4. Doesn't Matter
5. Hate Machine
6. Isabel
7. Beating The Man
8. Built To Last
9. Interlude
10. Art Of War
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