I can’t help but laughing a little at all the new metal bands that claims they have taken back the throne of thrash after countless metalcore bands has dwelled in their halls for too many years. Firstly, no-one has forgotten what the heroes of old did; secondly, the new wave of thrash metal will never be remembered in the same way. On the other hand however, all these new bands do bring back memories from the early eighties, and are by far preferred over every shitty metalcore-band that painted this genre black (or should I say brown) with all their crap. Fatality is another band spat out of hell (Northern Ireland) on the one and only mission to bring back the days of metal, and with this self-produced, brainless thrash-y and randomly titled release, they manage to at least bring back the feeling of the old days. Where bands like Evile and Warpath took a more modern approach in terms of production, these guys have coloured this black and white. In other words, this would sound like a lost thrash act to you if I didn’t tell you that they arrived a little late to the thrash-revival party in 2008. The guitars are thin and crunchy yet sharply distorted without much bass. The bass is dominant and loud just like it used to be. The drums are audibly hidden below anything to create a solid backbone, and the vocals are nicely under-produced which creates that certain rabid atmosphere. Even though these guys manage to re-create the atmosphere, if any, of old, the songs could’ve been of higher quality. Imagine the clash of lesser versions of Megadeth and Annihilator. That’ll pretty much equal Fatality.

Whopping 116 riffs and 27 guitar-solos displayed on 8 songs and 38 minutes says it all. This is maddening thrash with a slight technical approach. There is a downside to this though, as some of the songs can be mildly described as messy. Not in the awesome Overkill-way, but rather in the confusing way that’ll make you hit the skip-button. There are upsides to this though; one of them being that this is one hell of an exciting listen. The majority of riffs are on fire, and rabidly blazing through every note are Tom Morison and Steve Wilson with neck-breaking intensity backed up by the furious drumming of Keith Gordon and the rumbling bass of Jason Murray. Tom Morison has gotten a lot of crap for his lackluster vocals, but I honestly think that a rusty vocalist really brings more enjoyment to the genre that is thrash. Except for a few, there are not many thrash bands that has singers that can actually sing. Take Megadeth as a perfect example of a band that is perfect in many ways even though they have a singer that doesn’t sound quite right, yet still they wouldn’t be the same without, as he brings something of his own to the band. This is also the case with Fatality, and it’s something they deserve credit for in a society where everything is supposed to be perfect.

If you like shape-shifting music that is not prog or avant-garde or other nerdy things, then I can imagine that this will be bulls-eye for you. Even if they’re not creating anything new with this release, it’s definitely great fun. Just like Englishmen like their fish with chips, I like my thrash with speed and attitude. Fatality has it all, and even though they’re not the best in the business, they’re definitely on the right path, and has managed to please yours truly. With ass-kicking songs like the chaotic title-track, the incredible and slightly diverse It’s a Devil’s Night and the complete rock n’ roller Are You Ready to Rock?!, not a Thin Lizzy-cover by the way, Fatality partly succeeds on their mission, and maybe their next release will prove us otherwise. Recommended.