Thrash has always been one of my favorite courses for my metallic taste, and what thrasher doesn’t have some OVERKILL in their diet? 2010’s Ironbound was a fantastic release, and I’d also say that album was the most solid studio album I’ve heard from OVERKILL in years. So it led to my curiosity – did the band still have it in ‘em? Luckily enough, the answer is yes, and their latest E1 release, The Electric Age, is nothing short of absolutely crushing. If you were a fan of Ironbound, I can 100% tell you right now you will like The Electric Age. OVERKILL are a well-oiled machine who delivers some extremely solid thrash, but don’t just expect shredding madness, The Electric Age is also one of the catchiest OVERKILL albums I’ve heard.
The album opener “Come And Get It” has an incredible build up. OVERKILL marches into war, and once the 1:08 mark hits, get ready for some furious thrash done right. Bobby Blitz is still the man with some of the most entertaining/badass vocals out there, and the dominance of the rhythm section in “Come And Get It” rivals the World’s Strongest Man competition. Dave Linsk (lead guitar) proves to still be one of metal’s premier guitarists, though that’s a given as he’s been kicking beehinds consistently since 2000’s Bloodletting.
There’s plenty more of where that came from, and fans of the older OVERKILL classics like Feel The Fire, Years Of Decay, and Horrorscope should surely get into “Wish You Were Dead” and “Save Yourself”. Surely 2 of the darkest OVERKILL songs on The Electric Age, the band takes you through a wild ride with plenty of fast and furious riffing, screaming guitar solos from Mr. Linsk, and plenty of instant sing-a-longs with Mr. Blitz.
OVERKILL also has some heavy hitting crossover songs like “Drop The Hammer” and “21st Century Man”, and if you dug 2007’s Immortalis, good chance your adrenaline will be pumping hard from these bangers. Blitz urges you to sing-a-long, the bluesy groove parts on “21st Century Man” will kick your ass, and drummer Ron Lipnicki has plenty of great fills and double bass drum accents to take note of. While the couplet of “Drop The Hammer” and “21st Century Man” aren’t the fastest/most thrashin’ OVERKILL songs you’ve ever heard, there’s no denying their absolute power.
Making my way toward the end of The Electric Age, I dreaded this point simply because I didn’t want the album to end. I was having way too much fun! The album closer “Good Night” has an intriguing acoustic guitar intro, and while I waited for the metal to kick in accordingly, sure enough, around the 1:15 mark “Good Night” morphed itself into the fastest OVERKILL song on The Electric Age. There’s no denying these riffs if you’re a fan of thrash insanity, and Blitz has a very catchy groove in his voice that really makes “Good Night” an interesting song. Linsk gives a final hurrah with one of my favorite OVERKILL guitar solos on this release, and this 5:37 opus is one hell of a closer.
OVERKILL’s latest album, The Electric Age, is out now via our friends at E1, and I totally recommend you pick this album up! The album kept me banging my head from start to finish no matter the tempo changes, and this will surely be making my year end’s list.
Rating: 9 / 10
Label: E1 Entertainment
Website: www.facebook.com/OverkillWreckingCrew
By Alex Gilbert