I know many of my avid followers, who eagerly await each of my concise and on-point reviews, always look forward to my next musical missive. I say this because I recently voiced my thoughts on the prior EP release ‘Bazookiller’ from Spanish Thrash stalwarts Holycide. For those deprived souls who have not been privileged to experience my literary aptitude, take the time to look up the review here on this selfsame site, and I will await.
I directed you to the prior review because this, their current and 3rd full-length length comes across very similar and much the same in sound approach. At this stage in the game, Holycide is not gonna pull a ‘Cold Lake’ and completely abandon their sound. They have slowly become much more of a presence in the Thrash realm, and not maybe just a “one-off” from prolific frontman Dave Rotten. Granted, the prior EP and this release share much of the same DNA, but I feel Holycide has established itself and become more of a band. Especially because the vocals lean to a more deathly approach, it makes them much darker vocally and maybe sets them apart a bit from the pack.
On the other side of the coin, the riffing is almost straight from the Thrash bible 101; all are catchy and will have you playing air guitar in no time. That I feel will be the main draw for this band and keeps us thrash aficionados coming back for more, despite the typical thrash approach. Speaking of typical, I will voice my thoughts that I prefer the EP approach because it tends to my ears have a bit more of an impact. Things can get a bit samey midway through the album. Trim the fat, drop a song or two, and we could have more of a barnstormer on our hands. Another selling point ( to my eyes at least) is the cover art and the slow development of their “mascot”. He has become sort of a Vic Rattlehead / Eddy type of character, and I would like to think, or at least they should go full bore with the merchandising.
If you know the genre, it would be safe to say you are aware of Holycide. Still may be good to drop in and check out the latest from the band.
