Funeral Rain Press Corps

Genre: Crossover
Label: Slaney Records

It’s no secret that I’m a fan of crossover. It’s even less of a secret that I’m all about the greatest U.K. band that you’ve never heard: Adrenicide. How awesome are they? Well, let’s just say that there has been a huge spike in A.A. enrollment since these hardcore thrashards signed with Slaney Records.

War Begs No Mercy is exactly what you think it should be; a head first dive into a trillion gallon tankard of the cheapest swill you can get your gubby little paws on… with sharks! Founders Neil and Nuno tear up the frontlines with their dual attack of punky vocals and thrashing riffs, tearing through instant classics like Zombie Nation (which I initially thought was about the NES or Naked Zombie Sean Connery version) and Two Minute Warning! Drummer Blake Macready (how often do The Thing jokes pop up with him around?) blazes through War Begs No Mercy and is and oh so welcome addition to the line-up (since I didn‘t get to sample his talents in Kill), as is bestial bassist Rod Holdstock.

Time for a little bit of a downer; the lack of variation kind of wears on you if you’re not ready for it. And for some reason I wasn’t, even though their other releases are pretty much of the same formula. Other than that, there isn’t much that you can’t enjoy. War Begs No Mercy, begs no mercy!

Overall: Classic crossover with all of the aggression and in-your-face interface you can’t handle! Easily the best of a dying genre.

9/10

Adrenicide On MySpace
Adrenicide Official

Genre: Thrash Metal, Crossover
Label: Punishment 18 Records

More, more, MORE!!! That’s what I found myself yelling at my stereo after Blades And Rods stopped spinning. And Italy’s Shock Troopers certainly live up to their name! They swoop in, destroy everything in a frenzy of booze, pits and skateboards and move onto the next town!

Shook Troopers fit the thrashin’ party machine bill and they owe their beer soaked sound to influences such as D.R.I., Suicidal Tendencies and Agnostic Front. Sure, there is still that barrier caused by a heavy accent and jumbled English, but I think we’ve all moved past caring about trivial bullshit such as that… well, I haven’t entirely. (Petty! That’s me.) Cool though, Blades And Rods comes with a slew of catchy minute and something anthems for metal (Road Thrash), recent politics (Waterboarding) and other shit (Toilet Show). They’ve even got a tribute to one of my favorite old-school 2D scrolling shooters, Metal Slug! Niiiiiiice!!!

Overall: It scratches the itch that I really do not have the right to have since I’m practically swimming in crossover ‘n’ thrash… but what can I say, I’m a selfish bastard…

8.5/10

Enforcer On MySpace

Also Posted On E-MetalSpace

Genres: Crossover, Thrash, Hardcore, Punk
Label: Paranoic Music

High energy crossover! How can you not be a diehard fan of this awesome subgenre? One reason might be because you’ve never heard Devastator’s “Underground ‘N’ Roll”. This Italian trio serves up a thrashtastic album with a sunny California suffer attitude. Bombastic bass rolls and Pipeline-esque solos are abound from start to finish with spastic vocals pounding thick accented insults and slang into your sea water soaked ears! Most songs are two minutes (or way less) long for the A.D.D. crowd and are catchy enough to make an impact, despite their microorganismic lifespan.

Overall: “Surfs up!” with these Italian crossover badasses! If you like thrash ‘n’ hardcore that sounds like it shotguned a case of Red Bulls then hit the beach, then “Underground “n’ Roll” is just for you!

9/10

www.devastator.it
www.myspace.com/devastatorcrew
www.paranoicmusic.com

Originally posted at E-MetalSpace