German thrashers DUST BOLT [6] are very competent in a Kreator sort of way, although they’re more Coma Of Souls than Pleasure To Kill. You have to admire their effort, though, demanding circlepits between every song and refusing to let up on the energy levels.
It’s fair to say that pretty much every guitarist in extreme metal owes to a debt to Mantas, whether they know it not, so it’s not entirely surprising that Venom songs make up such a huge chunk of M:PIRE OF EVIL’s [7] set. It’s telling that the biggest cheer is reserved for when Trevor Perez joins them for Welcome To Hell.
“Bring a spare pair of shorts because you are going to shit yourself,” OBITUARY [9] boasted 25 years ago ahead of their first ever appearance on British soil. Underwear issues aside, they did set the bar for death metal in a live setting. While they may have lost a lead guitarist or two since and recruited Terry Butler (Death/Massacre) on bass, they’ve lost none of their fearsome power, while John Tardy is still one of the best voices in death metal, his scouring sandstorm riding bulldozing riffs of Frostian might.
Infected and ’Til Death are welcome old friends, while newbies such as Inked In Blood demonstrate that they are still one of the most consistent bands in the death metal world. No props, no gimmicks, just savage power./o:p
