Erasement – Beyond Recovery
Band: Erasement
Title: Beyond Recovery
Label: Independent
Release Date: 17, November, 2018
Country: Germany
Format reviewed: Digital
German Thrash! For any self-respecting Metal Head, these two words always instill an air of excitement when it comes to the description of a new band. Personally, as soon as I spot the tag, it is mandatory without question that I, at the very least seek it out and take listen. Perhaps you are the same. If that is the case, then you might be interested in this new album from Erasement!
Coming out of Bad Lauterberg, Lower Saxony in Germany, Erasement have been plying their thrash trade since 2011 and ‘Beyond Recovery’ is their 2nd album and follow up to 2015’s ‘It Comes to Life’. Clearly wearing their influences on their sleeve for all to witness, Erasement make no apologies for pursuing a well-worn path as paved by the likes of numerous 80s/90s Thrash acts. Name checking influencing acts such as Death Angel, Testament, early Metallica, Xentrix and Overkill as forming the backbone of their style, Erasement also gives a serious traditional metal nod in the direction of Priest, Accept and Grave Digger.
If any of that piques your interest then you’ll probably going to find Erasement to be a particularly fun and enjoyable listen. Of course, none of what this band does rewrites thrash history but again like most bands peddling this style, that just isn’t the point. Erasement are about kicking your ass with a sound that is very familiar but also wrapped up in their own personality and take on the genre. They have their own quirks and idiosyncrasies that give them some sort of independent quality about their song writing.
Across the 9 tracks presented here, Beyond Recovery holds up well in the compositional stakes. Typical fast note thrash riffage on the title track and ‘Lucille’ to the more mid-tempo groove chuggers like ‘Until You Die’, ‘Black Mass’ and ‘D.V.P’. It must be mentioned that the lead work from Tobias Schröter is particularly tasteful here – melodic and tuneful with ample bends/hammer-ons and whammy dive bombing moments employed. Backed by a solid rhythm/percussion section in Daniel Skupski (bass) and Thilo Schneider (Drums), Erasement are a very solid unit and the six or so years of working on their craft in the live setting has clearly paid off.
If Erasement sound very familiar to you thus far, then it is important to mention their somewhat unique piece of the puzzle – Vocalist/Guitarist frontman Kevin ‘Peeev’ Thiemert. Vocally, Kevin has what I call ‘The Schmier Factor’ embedded in his style. Of course, I refer to Destruction’s legendary frontman and his distinctive high pitch squeal/inflections that he employs so liberally on his vowels (think ‘Curse…the Gods). Not the only band vocalist to pay homage to said Thrash God (Hatchet and Traitor pay their dues also), but Kevin is clearly a big fan and along with his native German vernacular he gives his vocal/lyric pronunciation a very distinctive feel. Thankfully, and unlike some vocalist who tread the same path, Kevin keeps this effect to a minimum while opting to stick with his lower register which just happens to remind me a lot of former Xentrix vocalist/frontman Chris Astley.
With the appealing killer art work of some twisted psycho surgeon, ‘Beyond Recovery’ gives you an indication of the ‘fun’ factors this band is after. It is a very riffy/lead focused affair and the production is clear and crisp without losing its old school edge. The other great thing about it is its 36 minute length – Self-editing is king in the Thrash world! There are a couple of misses in the pack, but in wrapping things up, Beyond Recovery is worth a shot if you are looking for some straight up Thrash/HM worship – entertaining and with enough chops to keep you coming back for more. 7.5/10 KMaN
- Sick (Intro) 00:56
- Beyond Recovery 04:56
- Presence Of Doom 03:43
- Extinction 04:43
- Black Mass 04:20
- The Reapers Realm 03:15
- Lucille 04:08
- Until You Die (Remastered 2018) 06:07
- D.V.P. (Remastered 2018) 03:59Total: 36:07
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