Ravens Creed - Ravens Krieg (2015)

   Ravens Creed had an interesting journey since its formation in the late '00s. The band started to play crossover/thrash, and according to the that time actual tendencies in the main metal scene, their full-length debut "Albion Thunder" sounded pretty vintage and refreshing the same time. 
   By their second album the band took a confident step into a more aggressive thrash/death direction, and the third record "Ravens Krieg" was like a fulfillment of this style switch. The great sound quality had advantageous role by highlighting the pure wild aggressiveness, that still relied on intense thrashing. The band also had a new frontman since 2011 (Al Osta), and his death metal fitting vocal style also increased the more savage main impression. In fact, "Ravens Krieg" isn't far from becoming a death metal album, only the strongly old school oriented thrash metal basics keeping the music on the border of the two styles. The compromise-less spirit and limitless anger based approach makes the album comparable to "Pray" by Solstice, that's probably one of the wildest and most aggressive thrash/death albums until this day. And to reach or earn a similar status is no small thing after decades of extreme metal history. By the final song of the album the band also made clear, that even in case of extended song length (over 13 mins long), they're able to thrash till death and to do it without turning monotonous or unifacial. It's probably the most challenging and most enjoyable song on the album, and it's pretty sure that not many fellow thrash metal bands could do this after them. In total, "Ravens Krieg" is an excellent record, strongly recommended for both the fans of thrash and death metal.

Goatpenis - Flesh Consumed in the Battlefield (2014)

   It was mentioned before that Goatpenis might have the most diverse discography if it's about war metal bands. And "Flesh Consumed in the Battlefield" was probably something that most didn't see coming, cause it was like a complete style switch compared to the previous tendency of the band.
   If their intention was to keep balancing between the extreme metal styles like how old school South American bands did, switching to crossover thrash/death might seem as a reasonable decision. But from the perspective of a black/death or war metal band it's difficult to see why was it an advantageous decision. If they wanted to extend their audience by making an album compatible with hardcore fan audiences, the switch might have been successful, but the same time their music not only got simplified but dummified as well. If this album came out a decade earlier, when hardcore/metalcore was on the rise, it could have become the most brutal record that hardcore/crossover thrash audiences could have got, and it definitely could have became an influential album. But the timing and the band's past making this step questionable. It sounds more like a what if... like experiment, that includes all styles the could have influenced the band members (even black metal is there, but only for the final song), but this time their lesser known influences are mainly represented. It's like a reverse Goatpenis album (could be Goatvagina then?), that doesn't lack catchy themes, has better sound quality and production than usual, but the same time it's far different than what should be expected from the band. 

Cripper - Hyëna (2014)

   Similar to most German bands in general, Cripper also tried to do things a bit different if it's about concept and lyrical topics. At one hand this always turns out to be a good idea, cause this way many bands could have the chance to form their own (and many times odd) character. But the forced struggles to avoid clichés led to the development of hipsterization, that of course in Germany became the strongest trend, and ended up as the biggest cliché ever.
   However, Cripper's endeavours more reflected the "want to be different" ambitions of the '90s German scene, that was pretty much consolidated compared to the followings, and therefore despite Cripper had a pretty modern sound of thrash and their music was far from any '80s or '90s nostalgia, still sounded quite old school in their own time. Their energetic, intense thrashing always had a rougher, slightly death metal influenced tone, and excellent production. If it's about themes and quality, they were never joking. Social criticism was always an essential part of thrash metal, but Cripper always offered a slightly different down-to-earth perspective, that also had certain portions of truly rebellious language, on a not too insulting level. This golden middle way approach was always very typical to the scene, and this was also the reason why similar bands never gained the attention that they have been theoretically worthy of by avoiding clichés. Rigidness isn't a supporting feature in this genre, and even though the band always had potential, this frequently returning (typically German) issue served as a factor that raked out the fire.
   Anyways, "Hyëna" is still a highly enjoyable album for the fans of thrash metal.

Vampire - Vampire (2014)

   The nostalgia trend of the Swedish metal scene lined up a long list of bands since the '00s, and this partly British influenced, but better working tendency proved to be pretty successful in the underground. Similar bands keep showing up since then and the audience doesn't seem like ever getting bored of hearing music made by the same old formulas.
   Vampire is one of those bands, and their self-titled debut dismissed doubts again (if there was any) about the validity of vintage-like records. Their music is like time travel back to the '80s, when extreme styles were just about to develop. Therefore the thrash metal they play also includes both black and death metal features in limited form. The whole thing relies mainly on the feeling. The combination of the melodies and the slight atmosphere is responsible for the blackened touch, while the tone that became more aggressive than thrash metal used to be, includes the touch of death. This kinda indirect solution determines the essence of all three styles, and therefore gives the impression of diversity, though the band just kept using the same recipe during the album. And it's just a recipe that was used previously by many. Despite the album sounds  ancient, the band didn't try to strictly mimic the exact sound of the '80s like how for instance Death Breath did. But the effectiveness of "Vampire" still could be compared to theirs. When catchy themes and melodies getting embedded into primitive thrash hammering basics, their importance getting overstated instantly. In general this gives the essence of musical minimalism in extreme metal, and Vampire did literally a damn good job by recalling it the way how they did. 

Nervosa - Victim of Yourself (2014)

   For Nervosa it didn't take too much time after their formation to get a contract from Napalm Records and to become the second biggest worldwide known metal band from Brazil after Sepultura. 
   Their success lied on two factors. First of all, thrash metal was pretty much forced into the background since decades, and there was a tendency in the underground since the late '00s to bring back the style of the early '90s, that was mainly focused on old school death metal, but eventually black and thrash metal were slowly involved as well. Later this tendency infiltrated into the mainstream too in strongly restricted form, mainly by the return of bigger bands of the '90s. Of course ordinary thrash metal couldn't have much chance to gain wider attention, it had to be more aggressive, and Nervosa's death metal influenced thrashing proved to be as a great style pick. Their lyrics also reflected the same social issues and rebelling attitude that have been so usual for thrash metal back then in the '80s, but as the world have changed in some level in the need for more aggressive music, from another perspective the world didn't change at all, for such lyrics didn't lose from their validity. And soon it became evident that Nervosa wasn't joking, they've been impressively active and productive, by playing live literally anywhere they could, and they did their best no matter if they had to play before a few dozens or thousands of people. This is the main thing that could give real authenticity for a band. Also, in the '90s it wasn't new, but still it counted as extraordinary in the underground to see female members in a metal band, but a full female lineup was something else. The whole thing wasn't rare anymore in the '10s, not even in the mainstream, but nearly demanded by the audience, thanks to bands like Arch Enemy and several metalcore bands. And even though their musical approach wasn't so feminine by growling female vocal style, their music in general was still mainly for sissies so to say. Also the whole thing strongly relied on their sexualized appearance like in pop music. And then came Nervosa with their high quality old school thrashing and wilder appearance, that proved to be way more credible and evergreen the same time. It's still strongly improbable that a band with male lineup playing the same music could run the same career as Nervosa did, but that couldn't reduce their self-dedication and efforts to bring back thrash metal for wider audiences in a world that seemingly became more opened and accepting, but the same time maybe even more superficial and ignorant than ever. As in case of evolution and biology it used to be said: "life will find a way", for the mainstream scene it could be converted as: "metal will find a way". 

Infant Death - War (2013)

   Infant Death's debut could sound pretty nostalgic for those who are missing the feeling of '80s metal the most. It's kinda subjective and up to the listener to decide if "War" counts as a thrash/black or thrash/death metal album, and this is exactly the reason why was it a quite successful intention to recall the '80s.

   Since extreme metal subgenres haven't been fully developed back then, and basically most extreme music were just called collectively as thrash metal, it's pretty accurate to stay on the borders. On the side of the quite evident Slayer influences, Infant Death of course had more exaggerated tendencies, and it was not only needed for effective nostalgia. Ordinary thrash bands hardly could seem so extreme now like they have been for '80s audiences back then, and this is also the reason why those few thrash bands that have been able (or allowed) to break into the nowadays mainstream metal scene are basically playing thrash/death. Infant Death also took up the long lost "the faster the heavier" competition concept, and their speed and tempo is comparable to Sadus. The combination of their mixed style and aggressive tone reminds to South American bands like old Sepultura and Sarcófago. For old school fan audiences "War" might become a potential favorite. 

Nekrofilth - Devil's Breath (2013)

  Nekrofilth took a slightly different path than most late old school death metal inspired bands formed in the late '00s. They went back further to the past by adding punk influences into their music, and similar style combinations always giving new dimensions to musical minimalism. But despite their unusual methods, their music definitely fits to the new waved old school bands as some genuine gem in a more or less homogeneous pile. 

   If it's about punk combined with death metal, in this way it definitely works better than Impetigo back then and it's also way more enjoyable. The ancient, '80s-like spirit the band recalled is mostly reminding to Nunslaughter, thanks to it's simple but raw approach. But on the side of simplicity, by the nearly narrative vocal style, old Necrophagia might also come to mind. The production and the sound makes it evident, that "Devil's Breath" isn't some mysteriously long lost old school classic. The freshness and intensity of the album is comparable to newer thrash/death bands, who intending to recreate the core of musical extremity by focusing on it's possible cross-roads. The main tone is quite aggressive and that gives a lot to the music's effectiveness. Compromise-less, dirty, blackguard and explicit. The best possible implementation for a combination of thrash/death and hardcore punk. Strongly recommended for the fans of the filthiest old school musickness! 

Bones - Sons of Sleaze (2013)

   Bones debuted in 2011 with their self-titled album, that even though sounded like something very familiar, still had quite unusual approach - at least in the American scene. Punk influenced thrashing death metal isn't something common to find.  

   By "Sons of Sleaze" they've continued the same line. It's not quite clear if the style pick was just a coincidence, or a determined decision, influenced by the current tendencies of the underground scene. Their music could better fit into the British of Swedish scene, since as it was mentioned before, it became a trend at Swedish bands to take on the "vintage coat" and to recall the feeling of the '80s by turning back to the very roots of extreme genres. Bands like Witchery, Death Breath, Paganizer, Mordant, ect. all did something similar (of course, since we're now talking about an American band, here are no black metal influences), but even though among them only Death Breath involved punk directly, this step would be definitely a very Swedish thing to do, by their overwhelming attraction to the British scene. Also, Japanese bands had similar tendencies too, that probably they've developed independently, by analyzing their preferred styles to the depths. However, Bones had a slightly different approach, and therefore their music also had different main impression. Instead of trying to reproduce the sound and feeling of the '80s, they seem focusing on to play something pretty raw, dirty and essentially intense. By involving punk influences, the vintage feeling came instantly, but by the current noisy sound and heavier themes, the whole thing drifted further to become hardcore / crust punk. The song compositions and speed/theme switches are enough raw and compromise-less, to compensate the simple, and lighter punk riffs, that are giving the very basics of their songs. This kinda "archaic" approach also could be comparable to Nunslaughter.  At the end of the album a few songs even reaching the intensity of grindcore, making their British influences even more evident, if the listener might have any doubts. In total "Sons of Sleaze" is a pretty decent and sick record, potential favorite of the fans of old school musickness. 

Morphosys - A Face of Leather (2011)

   Morphosys was formed in the early '00s as a thrash/death metal band and debuted in 2006 with an EP titled as "Der Blutmond". The band's early period was pretty diverse by their music's current raw form, since their sound wasn't completely unified yet, and the various influences of the band members could have been intensely sensed. And on the side of thrash and old school death metal this also meant melodic death and black metal influences. 
   "A Face of Leather" was their second full-length album, on which an already experienced band could be heard with unified style and sound. This more homogenous form was advantageous at one hand, but also made their music more monotonous. Strict thrash tempo and song structures are dominant, and according to the main metal scene of the early '00s and '10s, this strictly traditional approach could have been refreshing to hear. The concept was mainly horror and gore inspired, and therefore chainsaw became a frequently returning symbol at the band. (And maybe not only because of their horror addiction, since the band is from Bavaria, a quite rural Bundesland, where work around the house including firewood cutting also could have been inspiring.) But at the other hand, keeping their previous more diverse style could have been a better idea, since the band seemed to be on the level in other styles as well. The remains of melodic death and blackened influences are still could be found on the album for a few songs (the song "Verzweiflung" is pretty much a blackened melodic death song for instance), and their greatness approves that diversity could have worked pretty well. In total Morphosys' music recalls the feeling of the late '80s and early '90s embedded into the sound of the modern era, and for thrash metal fans they could be a potential favorite. 

Foe - Madness (2010)

   Foe was a short lived project that definitely wasn't formed being fired up by the motivation to take place amongst the thrash/death metal elite. Instead they've played kind of an alternative and uncommon style of the genre, that's maybe the best way to shortly describe as primitive.
   This primitiveness comes from 2 things: first the nearly rehearsal sound quality, that tells about a low budget release. That's not necassarily bad, since the album sounds quite nostalgic therefore, and  because probably the members were not "young titans" that time either, "Madness" authentically recalls the old school feeling of the early '90s. The second thing comes from the simplicity of their themes, and from keeping things kind of low. They didn't seem trying to impress with any extremities. "Madness" doesn't lack thrashing, but slow downs to middle speed are common and longer lasting. They preferred simple melodies that are effecting mostly as catchy leads, but sometimes also creating a quite sick atmosphere. All assisted by deep growling vocal. It sounds like the band was mainly interested to express a heavy and obscure impression that could be compared to bands like Ascaris and Apophis, since there is some analogy to find how their songs and concept were built up. The direct influence of Ascaris also could be imagined. Despite the primitive tone of "Madness" the album shows way wider perspective than how it might be expected at the beginning. With time further depths getting introduced slowly, step by step like if the album was some factfinding confession. In total it might be enjoyable for the old school fans of the genre. 

Scaremaker - What Evil Have They Summonned... (2010)

   Scaremaker was a short lived collaboration project of Miss Vanessa Alucarda and Elektrokutioner, probably 2 of the most active and most productive individuals of the '10s American extreme underground.
   The evident vintage horror reference isn't surprising after knowing that horror nerds have made this alliance, and the strictly old school touch of their music either. In Scaremaker Miss Alucarda's imaginations might had absolute dominance, cause Scaremaker is more like an '80s thrash/death nostalgia, and this kind of old school approach on the side of mixing thrash, death, black and doom metal are returning features in her other projects too. In some way all these styles could be sensed on some level in Scaremaker too, and these mixed influences are allowing various possibilities to make the music diverse enough. The other analogy is that because of the frequent backing vocals, basically everyone's at vocals, but the leading growls were performed by Vanessa. This vocal diversity makes it difficult to find out, and only well practiced listeners could tell. This is also a feature that's quite '80s related, but everything could be explained with the main concept of the album too. At the end the recognition might come that '80s horror and metal nostalgia are inseperable not only in the case of the album, but in case of Vanessa Alucarda too. The album is quite unified and diverse the same time because of the mixed influences, and the performance and the concept are strongly remindig to old Necrophagia in some way. 

Realm of Chaos - The Demos (2009)

   Realm of Chaos was a short lived band that only had 2 demo tapes ("Leaders of Pain" and "Stench of Death"), but their music was a quite unique style mix. Fortunately their demos were released together afterwards as a compilation album.

   The band played crust punk with some thrash/death metal influences, so that already suspects high intensity. Even though this mix might seem unusual, it sounds well fitting together. The aggressive intensiveness of crust leads the music, but because thrash themes are often completing the crusty rawness and making it more diverse, so it never gets monotonous. They had a female vocalist who really did her job well, and had essential role in creating the basic aggressive tone. Death metal themes occasionally showing up by turning the main view heavier, and a second vocalist frequently assisting with deep growls. Even though the demos are pretty raw, they're still way more diverse than how it could be expected from ordinary crust or thrash/death bands. There are a lot of possibilites and simple, but very great themes getting introduced, and it really could plant deep curiosity in the listener, how the whole thing would sound as a studio record and with good production. "Stench of Death" had a bit better quality and it was louder too, might help to imagine what if... Even though the name suspects Bolt Thrower influence, but this is easily getting forgotten while listening, cause their style was way different. With time it shows up for real, but unexpectedly already, in the form of a very familiar starting riff. In general their music was so unified, that not many might think much about the source of  their influences. It's the same way compatible with the fans of crust punk and thrashing death too. 

Keeper of Dreams - Taste Smashed to Pieces (2009)

   There have been and always will be bands who are so obsessed by the influence of an exact band or album, that they just trying to play exactly the same.
   About Keeper of Dreams it's easy to tell from the beginning, that they've listened to Death's "Symbolic" 7/24 from morning to evening. The only difference is that they didn't have enough long musical past to go far with technical/progressive themes, so on the side the very familiar and recognizable Chuck Schuldiner styled themes, simpler, mostly thrashy riffs and melodies are assisting. But because or the strong similarity of the sound and vocal style it's not that notable, cause the "Symbolic" nostalgia easily takes the attention, and even unwillingly the listener might focus to figure out from where the exact themes came from. Even though the sign of maximalism and dedication could be definitely sensed in their music, the problem is with similar bands, that their own self-dedication is bonding their hands. "Taste Smashed to Pieces" could be entertaining and enjoyable for similarly "Symbolic" obsessed fans (or for others, who never heard about it), but the too strong and evident influence will never let the band to come out from it's shadow. The other thing is that it's never a good sign if a young band suddenly starts with technical/progressive music. That already suspects a short existence, cause basically progression and technical ambitions are coming with time and experience, and musicians who doesn't have that, might change style or burn out soon. Keeper of Dreams tried the first option to gain wider popularity, but it wasn't very welcome by the small audience that they've gathered in a short time. 

Izegrim - Tribute to Totalitarianism (2008)

   While the mainstream audience was completely impressed by forgettable bands like Arch Enemy or In This Moment to hear aggressive female vocals in front of a metal band (that already showed up in the '80s... Good morning "metalheads", it's always nice to see that you're paying attention), and thanks to the latest one, the whole thing started to develop into a metal Barbie movement; it's always nice to find bands who are unlike them, and are authentic too.
  Izegrim formed as a thrash/death band with quite heavy social criticism as lyrical concept. Catchy riffings are their most characteristic musical features that are like a bridge between the classical '80s style of thrash and the modern sound. Creative drum play is dictating the rhythm that's switching between intense and middle speed. It's far behind the extreme speed of the oldies, but the focus is more on diversity than on endless thrashing. The heaviness of the sound and the excellent cawing vocal style of Miss Marloes Voskuil are responsible for the harsher impression. The lyrics about the religious propaganda behind modern wars and terrorism were kind of accurate in the times of the Iraq war, but there are plenty of historical references for comparsion to find. That's definitely not the mirror whereinto many likes to look, and therefore Izegrim fills an empty space that was missing since a long while in the metal scene. Strongly recommended for both the newer and old school fans of thrash and death metal.

Skincrawler - Lair of the Foul (2008)

   To recall the style and atmosphere of the earliest extreme metal tryings of the '80s was a commonly returning feature at bands who showed up with the New Wave of Old School Death Metal.
   Skincrawler's one and only album reminds to early Celtic Frost by it's levitation above the borders of different genres, that was usual in the '80 when extreme metal styles were just about to develop. The songs were put together from simple, basic themes, and to increase the old school feeling, many would fit even into punk music in the case of a softer sound. The whole album sounds raw, like if it was an experimenting project, even the vocal style is like between shouting and narrative performance, that's only a step away from growling. That also gives the impression like if to combine the vocal with the music was somehow random and not completely figured out how to manage it. Except the pioneer bands of the '80s it's possible to find similar difficulities at very young teen bands. Maybe it's not necessary to seperate the two, since the musicians who have created the earliest classics were not much older, but those were different times. Skincrawler definitely didn't represent the case of amateurism, since it was a short living project of Mr. Elektrokutioner, whose name is inevitable to avoid when it's about the late '00s/early '10s American death metal scene because of the numerous bands he appeared in. He played on all instruments, and if his goal was to time travel back to the roots of metal extremities, he succeded.

Infest - Anger Will Remain (2007)

   Infest just imploded into the nearly metal-less area of the Balkans with their aggressive thrashing in the early '00s. Their full-lenght debut left no doubts about that even if this style was forced back into the depths of underground, it's still alive.
    "Anger Will Remain" was a raw, but still strong debut that may leave behind some nostalgic feeling in the listener by it's short catchy themes that are frequently interrupting the intense hammering. The fast thrashing have complete leading role on the album, like if it was an angry unstoppable war machine that represents the band's hatred of religion, and goes through everything and everyone. War is also a returning lyrical topic by detailing it's reasons: mass manipulation of the currently leading power, especially by religious causes and the assistance of the Church in highlights. The local audience can probably easily relate to that, since similar problems were quite actual in that region not so long ago. This intense utopistic daydream of a war that gives the final strike for the Church and it's obsessed followers reminds to the more Satanic concept of Deasater and to early Venom's less serious imaginations. The approach of Infest is more reality inspired.

Cripper - Freak Inside (2007)

   For those who missed the feeling of the old school Teutonic thrash attacks with some fresh blood included, Cripper may have been served as some relief.
   The band's debut was a bit more aggressive of course than what was usual in the '80s, since a lot of time has passed, but that was mostly represented in the sound and not in the intensity of their songs. The old competition of playing so fast as possible is history, and even though nobody can judge the band that they've nearly fell asleep while playing, cause naturally the album is intense as a thrash album should be; compared to the oldies, "Freak Inside" counts as a middle speed thrashing album. Simple, but rigid themes dictating the tempo for the march and the final charge. At the end of the album the band tried to involve some plus by more melodies and diverse themes. These tryings can be sensed earlier too, and it sounds like if they've tried to be careful, or they just wanted to hold their surprise card for the final; but things got revealed at the end and they showed what they've got. The other reason why Cripper counts more rough is Britta Görtz as their charismatic vocalist. The rude, aggressive style of Frau Görtz can cause some nostalgic impression if the listener may think about the golden age of the German thrash scene... but it's a different story now. May the "Freak Inside" kill your thirst!

Demiricous - Two (Poverty) (2007)

   Demiricous debuted as a band with mainly too obvious Slayer influences, and with a sound that was enough harsh and noisy to push further their music to the borderline of death metal.
    The first album somehow gave the impression, that the band just randomly mixed their various influences, but by their second arrival they've returned with a more unified style, and the symptoms of Slayer overdose also decreased. On "Two" they've operated with simpler riffs that are suspecting some hardcore influence too, and not only because of the groovier simplicity of their themes, but the vocal style also changed from growling to shouting. However the main view turned closer to thrash metal too and it's more effective by it's bare aggressiveness. Even though the band mostly had old school influences, it's easy to realize that Demiricous is a modern project partly beacuse of the sound and also because of the song structures. But still this fast developed change had a very positive effect on their music and refers to the dirty depths of a real thrash moshpit. All-in-one "Two" is a quite enjoyable and intense thrash material, recommended for the fans of the genre.

Dreams of Damnation - Epic Tales of Vengeance (2006)

   Dreams of Damnation was formed in 1992 as a speed metal band with strong heavy metal influences, but after a single record they turned silent for a long time. In 2000 they showed up again and after a 2 EP's they relesed their first full-lenght album.
   They've returned with a completely new line-up to play thrash/death. The whole line-up changed again before "Epic Tales of Vengeance" and they continued thrashing with a female vocalist. Even though their music definitely has old school influences, the album doesn't count as a nostalgic record. "Epic Tales of Vengeance" starts as intense thrash/death, but the following songs sound like if they were not sure how to mix their various influences. (The album isn't longer than their first EP by the way.) In the guitar themes some heavy metal references could be sensed (this stayed as the only common feature compared to their old style), but they also sympathized with modern song structures and sound. They played sometimes like if they were confused about how to compose the themes together. At the drumms it's the most markable. But the intense hammering and the combination of fast riffings and aggressive vocal style saves the day before things would turn chaotic. In general "Epic Tales of Vengeance" was a promising album, maybe the members just didn't have enough time to find some common ground to be able to work together more effectively.

Secretum - Happy Happy Killing Time (2003)

   Secretum was a German thrash/death metal band from Berlin, formed in the late '90s. Their full-lenght debut "Happy Happy Killing Time" was a good example how old school style of metal took modern form and sound.
    Even though the influences of the band are evident, there is something more through the nostalgic feeling that made their music different from the style of the late '80s' and therefore actual for the early '00s. Secretum wrote their themes with more flexibility and that may sound like experimenting compared to other ordinary bands in this style. On the side of the aggressiveness and the speed there are more diverse themes than usual. Even though it's not really possible to do anyhing new on this line, there is a large palette of influences. So the best thing that good musicians can do is to select wisely. The lyrics also followed the partly traditional but the same way proceeding ambitions. It's not the same social critics with some political touch like over a decade ago, there is strong sarcasm too and a grotesque and morbid aspect performed by a quite insane vocal style. The intensiveness and the diversity made the album enjoyable for long term.