Brazilian blackthrash!

Of course, I could stop this review right there and you’d know a fair bit of what to expect from Speedkiller‘s new outing, but I’m nothing if not professional so I’ve got stuck right into Inferno in order to bring you all the deets on what turns out to be a rather pleasing little slab o’filth. Sometimes I love this job!

Actually, opening cut The Birth of Immortal Evil, weighing in at around six minutes long, might seem to be a bit ‘epic’ for a true blackthrash elpee, but the band maintain the rage throughout the track so early fears are allayed, especially when Spellcaster unleashes a pretty nifty single that screams ‘we’re pretty good, us!’ and grabs you by the lugs pretty much immediately.

Indeed. the lead playing throughout is rather good – the soloing on Blood Worship is off the chain, if you want to get technical about things – and Spellcaster augments his superior six string slashes with an endearingly gruff lead vocal too, making him, in my book at least, something of a rising star of blackthrash. Does such an accolade exist? It does now!

Short n’sharp ripper Evil is another highlight, rounding out side one (did I mention this was coming out as a cassette tape LIMITED TO ONLY FIFTY COPIES?) in incendiary fashion, whilst penultimate track Invoke the Lord also gets the job done in spectacular fashion thanks to some great old school thrash drumming from Hellkrätus, but really if you are any sort of blackthrash devotee there’s nothing here that’s going to cause you to turn your nose up and stab a finger at the fast forward button; Nine tracks, all with something going for them, performed by blokes who clearly live and breathe this stuff (the lineup is rounded out by bassist A. Sküllcrüshër)  – what’s not to like? Let the Black Blitzkrieg commence!

Inferno releases on March 8th.