Though Blood Feast was one of many 1980s
thrash bands to make a comeback in the last decade, the band decided to wait a
bit before releasing their first record in years. Most of these bands are
better as nostalgia acts, but with Blood Feast, that just isn’t the case. They
arrive in 2017 every bit as vicious and aggressive as they were in 1987. “The
Future State of Wicked” is a constant charging effort, overrun with high-speed
thrash riffing and absolutely maniacal vocals. The band’s current singer may
not have appeared on any of the classic stuff, but his voice is decidedly old
school, and would have fit with their old music perfectly.
Relative to “Kill For Pleasure”, for
example, “The Future State of Wicked” is quite a bit cleaner. Don’t mistake
this as being too modern, but that album was a bit of a mess, and it feels like
the band has tightened up considerably since then. The production on this
release is an ideal fit for very raw death/thrash, with the primary driver
being a sharp guitar tone. The buzzsaw riffs with get any neck banging, and are
interspersed with spastic solos that would make Slayer proud. The drumming is likewise fairly active, with a number of impressive fills. There are some slower moments on the album (parts of "The Underling" come to mind), but there isn't a plodding track, as everything that isn't lightning fast is still crushing.
Highlights come early on this record, with
the opening two cuts being the most ripping. Both “INRI” and “Off With Their
Heads” will stay with you long after this record ends, due in large part to the
throat-tearing screams of each track’s title in the chorus. The rest of the
album doesn’t disappoint, but isn’t quite as memorable as these two tracks.
Regardless, Blood Feast fans and even thrash fans in general that have yet to
discover the band should love this release. The band does absolutely everything
right and nothing wrong, and in a world of pointless comebacks, Blood Feast
stands tall above the crowd!
Highlights
"INRI"
"Off With Their Heads"
Final Rating
4.25/5 or 85%.
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