STRIKEMASTER

In some circumstances I might wonder why a 2009 album would be re-released only a few years later by a different record label. But in the case of an album like STRIKEMASTER's "Vicious Nightmare" any exposure it may have gotten upon its initial release (very little as it turns out) couldn't possibly have been enough. It is a raw and savagely heavy throwback to a 1980s form of thrash metal that took cues from both the German and American sides. As such, this digipak rerelease through Metalhit.com was a no-brainer.

No matter how much you'll appreciate the Mexican outfit's more than respectable song construction, it is impossible to ignore that raw and bloody guitar tone and the entanglement of concertina wire riffs — and who in the hell would want to ignore it anyway? The sound is just perfect for what is an often frantic, high speed performance of thrash metal that comes off like a melding of DESTRUCTION, VIO-LENCE, and to some extent early EXODUS, and then offers it with brutal moments that approach the near-death of DARK ANGEL and sometimes the tempo lunacy of '80s-era HIRAX. Beyond the fact that STRIKEMASTER has a real knack for writing more than their fair share of murderous thrash riffs and neck-snapping, stop-on-dime arrangements shifts, several songs sound like long-lost '80s classics that have just recently been uncovered. One listen to the psychotic tempos and hot shit licks of "Prophetic Chemical Death" and the buzzsawing war blast of "The Way to Na Trang", complete with bugle call and shouts of "You mess with the best, you will die like the rest" is all the persuasion you'll need to devour this sucker whole. Artwork exclusive to the release from Mark "The Master" Riddick is the cake icing.

STRIKEMASTER makes no attempts to be anything but a product of its influences and the results are nothing short of enjoyable on "Vicious Nightmare". No awards for ingenuity nor any breaths of fresh air here; "Vicious Nightmare" is meant to appeal to fans of authentic old school, flame throwing thrash metal devoid of even trace amounts or pretension or modernity. That'll work!