Aggravator – Populace Destructor

[nyrating]

16th October 2015 Markus Falkenberg Album Reviews 0

Old school thrash metal. Definitely old school thrash metal. This was the first thing that came to my mind after the first listen. Particularly the first song “Born In Uniform” reminds me a lot of Kreator with its brutal speed, solos and the singer’s style of shouting out the lyrics. I can easily imagine this song becoming a fan favourite.

After the first song, the band slows down a bit, but is still well within thrash territory. The only complaint I have about “Fleshwork” is that the song feels a tiny bit repetitive at times. It is still a solid effort, though. The same can be said about the third song “Social Unrest”. Fast and solid rhrash, but no true masterpiece either. The next song “Aetus Mortis” is definitely the most unusual song on the album. It is not just a ballad, it is also a bass solo! Maybe it was a hommage to Cliff Burton? Who knows? The bass is not distorted in any way or form and rather played like an acoustic bass, though.

Unfortunately, the song is also a turning point for the album. The songs start to feel more and more repetitive, and less and less special. Yes, there are still some exceptions like the title track “Populace Destructor” with some other songs having some very interesting parts here and there, but the album was no longer to captivate me like it should for an excellent rating.

This is not to say that it is a bad album. I can easily imagine how many fans will come to love it! In fact, I have the feeling that this band has got huge potential and is likely to come up with some real gems in the future. However, I am not a fortune teller and my rating must be based on what I hear now. This is also why I feel the need to rate this album with only six devils. Yes, “only” six devils. The album is a very strong “six devil” album after all and got extremely close to the seven devil rating. Maybe the next time. I really hope so!

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