I’m not exactly sure how this happened, but April 27th brings the release of two heavy hitting new thrash records from established Norwegian bands. In addition to Aura Noir’s new effort of catchy yet blistering black/thrash, Blood Tsunami has released their fourth full length Grave Condition. Five years have passed between Grave Condition and its predecessor but it finds the group sticking with a similar approach of fast, punchy thrash that is heavy on hooks and light on filler.
Blood Tsunami’s first two albums had a little bit of melodic death metal incorporated into a thrash base but were ultimately weighed down by some of the longer tracks which felt like they ran out of steam before their conclusion. With 2013’s For faen! the group gravitated towards traditional thrash and stripped things down to the genre’s essence while still incorporating some punk and NWOBHM influences. Grave Condition continues in the same direction, with the nine songs all coming in under four minutes each. The instrumentals use this to their advantage, coming in with fast paced and high energy riffs that will make you want to headbang until your neck breaks. Though there are some similarities between songs each one has a lead that’s sure to hook you and the tempo variations shake things up enough to give each one an identity of its own. With production values that add to the blistering intensity alongside the catchy guitar work, there’s a lot to like about Blood Tsunami’s latest.
While Pete Evil has been the band’s vocalist since the very beginning his style has changed a bit over the years. Thrash Metal and Grand Feast for Vultures were oriented towards higher pitched harsh vocals, where recent years have saw a switch over to slightly lower pitched screams that are cleaner overall. On this album the vocals incorporate both of these styles, switching things up often enough to keep the energy level at its highest possible level. Sometimes Pete Evil crosses over into death/thrash territory stylistically, but for the majority of Grave Condition his vocals come through as straight up thrash done with the same fury as the classics.
Blood Tsunami keeps things lean and stripped down, hitting listeners with strong riffs and intense vocals from start to finish. It’s another strong showing that leans heavily on its 80’s influences without feeling like a retread, and while Aura Noir’s latest stuck with me just a little bit more both records deserve a spot in your collection if you’re a fan of anything thrash related. Grave Condition is available from Soulseller Records.
-Review by Chris Dahlberg
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