Retro bands either are hit or miss. I needed a few spins of ‘The Horror’ to decide what it would be in Tribulation’s case but by now I’m convinced it’s a fucken hit. Their mixture Thrash/Death in the vein of Merciless/Necrophobic (‘The Nocturnal Silence’ era) defies originality or progression but the band manages to deliver some high quality music which sounds eerily authentic old school.
As many old Extreme Metal albums this album starts off with a short intro (piano piece) and follows with 8 fierce razorsharp thrashing songs. Overall the pace is high but these fuckers know when to add in some breather moments to avoid listeners getting weary of all the speed.
Additionally, there are sprinkles of melody used sparesely throughout the songs which make for some pleasant auditorial garnishing. Some prime examples can be found in ‘Crypt of Thanatophilia’, ‘Sacrilegious darkness’ (a personal fave!), ‘Seduced by the smell of rotten flesh’ or ‘Graveyard ghouls’.
But rest assured that speed freaks will get their fill for sure with for instance ‘Curse of resurrection’, ‘Beyond the Horror’, ‘The Vampyre’or ‘Spawn of the Jackal’. As one should expect the production is raw as fuck and suits the music rather perfectly.
While Tribulation don’t even try to present anything new they do a remarkable job at presenting very familiar grounds in ass kicking quality. If you long back to days long gone then Tribulation will bring tears of joy to your eyes.
Job well done!
