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Well, isn’t this a neat little change of pace: Los Angeles neo-thrash that doesn’t embarrass itself in a facile attempt to hit every genre-exclusive point of reference on a sleeves-torn denim vest. So, while this does wax rhapsodic for East Coast ‘80s like Anthrax, Hades and Gothic Slam, more emphatic of groove than speed, it also expresses dual-harmonic nods to Iron Maiden (or Maiden via Neil Turbin) in a more than perfunctory manner. It hedges bets, for sure: “The Servant of Liars” serves up utter Slayer plagiarism, very occasional death metal growls are very unnecessary, and each song can stand to be shorn of an inch’s worth of frayed ends. Still, this is pretty strong stuff. The solos are tall and proud in a manner that gives you the impression that they’re individually credited in the liner notes ala Tipton/Downing/Downing/Tipton/both, the bass pops like D.D. Verni and Greg Christian on all those Atlantic Records releases by Overkill and Testament, respectively – I told ya this sounded East Coast. Six songs, all winners, all revisited on the band’s proper full-length debut in 2008, The Revelation Diaries, to be heard soon and reviewed whenever. Postscript: wouldn’t you know it, they had to go and split up, depriving me of the chance to hear the awesome eight-minute trad-metal extravaganza “Human” in a live setting. I swear, sometimes I’m convinced that these newcomers disband just to spite me.
| Tracklist |
| 1. Armageddon |
| 2. Erase |
| 3. The Servants Of Liars |
| 4. Savior |
| 5. Seven Deadly Sins |
| 6. Human |
: 36:29
| Buy other Absolution albums |
