Artist: Crucified Mortals
Title: Crucified Mortals
Type: Album
Label: Hells Headbangers Records

After nine years of a subterranean existence, and a host of demos, split releases and EPs, these thrashing maniacs from Ohio have finally released a full length album, containing `ten horror stories transcribed into metallic hymns’. It is time to dust off the denim and leather, sew those patches back on and get thrashing! I would describe this album as `satisfyingly unfashionable’ for several reasons. Firstly, this is thrash metal how it always used to be, not how it has been `remembered’ – dark, grisly, aggressive and slightly rough around the edges, Crucified Mortals sound like thrash metal fans who have definitely been there since the beginning, probably beating up glam rock posers outside the school gates. Secondly, this thrash album isn’t laced with sickly-sweet melody like so many modern metal albums that claim to be influenced by thrash metal. Instead, this self-titled album is enjoyably tune-free, concentrating on caving your skull in with brute force rather than pouring sugar into your ears.

This album reminds me a great deal of why I was drawn to thrash metal in the first place – it is dark, visceral, relentless and makes you want to bang your head until it falls off, drawing you into the vortex of its violent energy. Musically, Crucified Mortals cover quite a wide geographical area; this album doesn’t just contain the neck-snapping Bay Area crunch, or the churning darkness of early Slayer and Dark Angel, but I can also detect the frantic nastiness of German thrashers Destruction and Kreator as well. There are lots of great, hectic, single note trilled riffs reminiscent of Schmier and the gang, as well as the relentless, dark fury of early Dark Angel – some the riffs could easily be outtakes from `Darkness Descends’.

The production really does this album proud as well – it is wonderfully clear, and all instruments can be heard without anything being too overbearing; yet this all achieved without sacrificing the heavy, dark and urgent feel of the music. The guitar sound is wonderfully authentic; crunchy and mid-range, but with bags of atmosphere and a whiff of sulphur. Craig Horval’s vocals are very effective too, a belligerent roar with underlying hints of theatricality and hysteria which remind me a little of Deceased’s King Fowley, really adding macabre depth to the horror-themed songs.

It is possible to perhaps criticize the band for lack of originality... It is true that this album contains almost no surprises – this is a thrash metal album ladies and gentlemen, containing everything you probably already knew about thrash metal; powerful, crunchy, dark, frenetic riffs, brief, guitar-mangling solos, and is pretty frantic and energetic throughout. What may actually be a surprise though, is how good it actually is.

http://www.myspace.com/crucifiedmortals
http://www.unitedheadbanger.com