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6.5
- Bands:
ATTACKER - Duration: 00:33:37
- Available from: 12/04/2024
- Label:
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Cruz Del Sur Music
Streaming not yet available
Among the bands that laid the foundations of US metal in the 1980s we must certainly also mention Attacker, who thanks to two albums such as “Battle At Helm’s Deep” (1985) and “The Second Coming” (1988) are rightly considered among the big names on the scene.
The rapid disappearance and then, as happened to many other colleagues, the rebirth which took place in the 2000s, saw a succession of various interesting records always well imbued with smoking metallic charge, starting from the good “Soul Taker” of 2004 up to the last “Sins Of The World” from eight years ago.
Under the attention of our local Cruz Del Sur – an authentic security in the sector – the American band returns with a new album entitled “The God Particle” and eight songs ready to set the stereo on fire and pay homage to the formation’s forty-year career, thus also honoring the passing of historic members Jim Mooney (guitar) and John Leone (vocals).
Just over thirty minutes during which the New York group led by drummer and leader Mike Sabatini, the only remaining historical member, is ready to unleash hell with songs that move between American school heavy metal and a touch of speed and thrash , between aggressive riffs and the gritty, rough and cutting singing of Bobby Lucas, who doesn’t make us miss his predecessors too much in a role that has seen a succession of singers over the years; in short, the characteristics that have always accompanied the band are faithfully reproduced in these eight new compositions.
Thunderous opener “Knights Of Terror” flows with vigor, but it’s the devastating impact of “Curse Of Creation” that commands attention; the guitar work is noteworthy, with the pairing of Mike Benetatos and Jon Hasselbrink capable of creating interesting textures, always well supported by Brian Smith’s precise bass, with more than a wink here and there to the great Vicious Rumors.
Instead, the powerful “Stigmatized” runs without stopping, leaving behind only scorched earth and unleashing furious headbanging: certainly without any sign of innovation but with an enviable energy!
Yet, if the start gives us hope, the exhilaration could receive a sharp decline as the listening goes on: the aggressiveness of Ours never drops by a millimetre, but pieces like “River Of Souls” and “Kingdom Of Iron ” show very few ideas, and even the vocal lines sung by Bobby Lucas don’t have the impact we would like. The smoking solo of this last piece runs quickly like a car on the Formula 1 tracks, but it’s not enough to raise its prices, and even the uncontrolled riffs of the following “World In Flames”, all things considered, don’t have the grip necessary to penetrate under the skin.
In the finale, “The Mighty Have Fallen” demonstrates how a highly engaging piece can be constructed without losing power, not necessarily by always running at a hundred miles an hour but by better measuring the rhythms and taking care of the vocal lines more effectively, between choirs and some sharp sharp notes.
The Attackers know no half measures and for thirty minutes they dispense impetuous heavy-speed metal without allowing a moment to breathe, but they are not always able to maintain control of their car, which at times seems to get a little lost among the winding roads.
But forty years of career and the many line-up changes have certainly not affected the sound energy and attitude of the band, which returns with an honest and biting US heavy metal album, perhaps just a little too linear and discounted.
