VENDETTA – “FEED THE EXTERMINATION”
MASSACRE (2011)
1987 was a very important year for me. Having been introduced to the
likes of Metallica and Slayer through older acquaintances friends and
the invaluable guidance of the Greek Metal Hammer, it did not take long
before I realised that Thrash Metal was my genre of choice. That is when
the epic task of obtaining every single Thrash Metal album available
began – an almost impossible task, due to the fact that the distribution
of the most obscure albums of the genre was almost non-existent in my
beautiful country at the time. I cannot remember how and when it
happened but at some point in the early to mid-90s a copy of “Go And
Live…Stay and Die”, Vendetta’s 1987 debut album, finally landed in my
hands and, even though the material on offer could hardly be described
as innovative, these German thrashers made enough of an impression on me
so as to be genuinely pleased when I found out that twenty five years
later they are about to release their fourth studio album entitled “Feed
The Extermination” – an album whose review you are now about to read.
When I first informed a friend of mine who works for a Metal
festival in Germany that I was listening to Vendetta’s new album his
response was that what I should expect to hear a fairly average German
Thrash Metal band. In some ways such a comment could be justified -
“Feed The Extermination” consists of ten mid-tempo riff orientated
compositions whose rhythmical structure does not pose many challenges.
Having said that, I believe that for people like me who grew up
listening to the works of fairly underground Thrash Metal bands such as
Assassin, Darkness, Exhumer and At War, Vendetta’s fourth studio album
will provide quite a few moments of real head banging quality, featuring
numerous meaty riffs whose impact is ever so increased by Dan Swano’s
(see Edge Of Sanity) sterling production work.
The same titled opus “Feed The Extermination” provides a dynamic
opening for the album with its riffs baring close resemblance to those
used by Slayer in their classic opus “Spirit In Black” (see “Seasons In
The Abyss”). “Tremendous Brutality” is a simply riffed composition with a
slightly unusual rhythmical structure whose main focal point is the
catchy vocal melody in its refrain that keeps the momentum going,
something that cannot be said for the follow-up “Cancer” whose
old-school riffs are pretty average in comparison. One of the first
highlights of the album is the four minute “Ovulation Bitch”, a song
that features a dead catchy refrain and which is followed by the
Testament sounding tunes of “Storage Of Anger” and the militaresque drum
themes of “Dog In The Manger”. It is at this exact point that the album
reaches its true potential with the duet “De-organ-izer” and “Abuse”,
the former being another Testament influenced head banging track while
the latter is a seven and a half minute atmospheric opus containing
numerous atmospheric/harmonic passages filled with strong lyrics and
passionate performances. “Trust In God” is another short, simply-crafted
composition with a few classic Heavy Metal references a la Running Wild
and “Till I’m Dead”, the last composition on offer, is another
mid-tempo vocally-led track that further enhances the band’s classic
Metal character.
So there you have it: twenty five years after releasing their debut
album, Vendetta are ready to present us with their fourth musical
offering. Will “Feed The Extermination” be the album that will help them
move up the ladder and compete with leaders of the Teutonic Thrash
Metal scene, such as Sodom, Kreator and Destruction? Unfortunately for
them the answer is probably ‘no’, however these ten new compositions
contain enough passion and energy to convince any fan of Thrash Metal
that Vendetta is a band worth hearing. As for all the rest, well, your
guess is as good as mine!
John Stefanis
Rating: ***1/2 (3.5/5.0)
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VENDETTA – “FEED THE EXTERMINATION”
by
Yiannis Stefanis
on Thu 16 Feb 2012 20:26 GMT | Permanent Link
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