REINO ERMITAñO
Rituales Interiores
(I Hate)

HARVEY MILK
Life...The Best Game in Town
(Hydra Head)

CAPILLARY ACTION
So Embarrassing
(Pangaea)

STALINGRAD
S/T
(Self-Released)

SLOW HORSE
Rusher
(Sophomore Lounge)

MAR DE GRISES
Raining the Waterhearts

(Firebox)

BIGELF
Cheat the Gallows 

(Custard)

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It’s been a while since I’ve had this much fun with a thrash metal album. It’s not that these are the best musicians or the most gifted songwriters. It’s not even that Stalingrad are the fastest shredders or more aggressive crossover crossing motherfuckers in the hood. It’s not even that they wear the coolest obscure thrash metal t-shirts or high top Reeboks. You won’t even find much two-hand tapping, or sweep picking in their music. No, they are loose as fuck, and a bit rough around the corners.  And you know, they don’t need to be or have any of the above to be good healthy fun. Stalingrad are good because their songs embody everything that’s great about thrash metal; sure this shit is serious business but Stalingrad make me chuckle and that’s good enough. And that’s what thrash metal has always been for me. Fun. Sweet and silly fun.

One reason why this record almost rules; their song “raW” (yes, the W is capitalized) is one of the simplest thrash songs I’ve heard in ages. It’s basic as fuck. It’s chugalicious. It’s one rumbling mutha. It sounds as if Stalingrad was one day practicing some old Holocaust tune and all of a sudden a happy accident; they created thrash metal’s embryo. It’s their milestone and from here on thrash metal grew in spurs. Fuck yes.

Another reason why Stalingrad kinda rules; their song “State of Hipocrisy” fucks with a few notes from Iron Maiden’s “Aces High” before going mini chugga-chugga and introducing lyrics as enthusiastically offensive as ‘I killed Jesus, I killed Moses, I killed Mohammed, now who’s next?’. Wow, chill out guys. Watch it for those extremists out there. Two lines later, comes the punch line; ‘I killed God, I killed that cock sucker’. All with a threatening rasp of a voice courtesy of main blasphemer Zeeshan Raheel. And to think that these Canadians look like they are about 16 years old. Good job parents.

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