Suicidal Angels – Sanctify the Darkness (Nuclear Blast Records)
Sunday, 17th March 2013
Part of the initial charm of early Sepultura was how little English Max Cavalera could speak, thus causing his enunciation to be forced and for the lack of a better term, awkward. It feels the same way on Sanctify the Darkness as singer Nick grunts essentially the same syllable structure throughout the entire album. We’ll cut him some slack – learning a foreign language (they’re Greek, by the way) is a tough go. So is being a viable, interesting thrash band, something we’re not sure if Suicidal Angels is quite yet.
More German than Bay Area thrash, Suicidal Angels approach thrash with a much wider scope than most bands do, meaning this thing is not all riff and idea thievery. Crunchy mid-tempo sections highlight “The Pestilence of Saints,” along with manic speed-picking intervals during “Inquisition.” Since there is little concern for technicality, Suicidal Angels actually comes across as a thrashified Vader, if one could imagine such a thing. We sure can.
As we mentioned above, vocalist/guitarist Nick will be the ultimate deal breaker. He’s not all that bad and no one cares about the vocals and lyrics in thrash anyway, so maybe he’ll become a sufferable joy for some. By the time the roving “Apokathilosis” (check out the “humppa” metal portion at 2:04 – it’s a hoot) and ending barrage of “Child Molester” hit the skids, it could be said Suicidal Angels wouldn’t be the mighty thrash underdog without him. Stumble on, brother.
www.myspace.com/suicidalangels
(This content originally appeared on Blistering.com)
