Album
Type: Full Length
Date
Released: 2/6/2014
Label: Napalm Records
‘Awake the
Riot’ CD/DD/LP track listing:
01. Living Hell
02. Soul Erazor
03. Beneath The Earth
04. You Lost Sight
05. Agent Thrash
06. Living A Lie
07. Awake The Riot - The Final War
08. Eternal Waste
09. Drowned In Blind Faith
10. Worlds Built To Deceive
11. The Monotonous - Distant Scream
12. Future Shock (EVIL DEAD cover)
02. Soul Erazor
03. Beneath The Earth
04. You Lost Sight
05. Agent Thrash
06. Living A Lie
07. Awake The Riot - The Final War
08. Eternal Waste
09. Drowned In Blind Faith
10. Worlds Built To Deceive
11. The Monotonous - Distant Scream
12. Future Shock (EVIL DEAD cover)
The
Band:
Lenny B. |
Vocals, Guitars
Flo D. | Guitars
Nico R. |
Drums
Bene M. |
Bass, Vocals
Review:
German
thrash warriors Dust Bolt return- straight from the heart of Bavaria! This is
straight up thrash (OK, maybe with a little punk/hardcore snottiness). Opener
‘Living Hell’ sets the
stall out. Riffs, pace and vocals that are not clean exactly, but not growls
either. There are frantic leads, half time and double times and so on. ‘Soul Erazor’ carries on the carnage-
with shouted backing vocals and a touch of Exodus in the vibe. ‘Beneath the Earth’ is a little more
measured, but still slays and has a breakdown section. 'You lost sight' has
elements of melody in the riffing (in the way that latter day Kreator does-
don't worry) and keeps the tempo high.
‘Agent Thrash’ is exactly what you would expect with
a title like that. It is a shame that the drummer's right hand (or cymbal hand)
is not working at full pelt, though- I prefer my thrash to be played with a
fast hand playing all four beats as it gives it an extra element of feel. That
said, it is none of my business and the groove is there- propelling the track
long nicely- with the right hand gainfully employed in the breakdown section,
too. ‘Living a Lie’ is tremendously entertaining, throwing as
it does some great riffs into the mix. Indeed, the whole record is good,
friendly, violent fun (to borrow a phrase).
The
title track is up next and does not disappoint- employing a kind of rolling
Priest-esque groove to start before... settling into a mid pace (that's thrash
mid pace) chug and then full thrash. 'Eternal Waste' boasts a cool drum intro
(great sound) and then a cooler main riff. Fantastic stuff. There is an almost
Suicidal Tendencies (thrash era) approach to this one. Cool!
‘Drowned in Blind Faith’ is the sound
of the band spreading their wings a little- an atmospheric and noodling intro
prefaces the thrash riffing this time- again with a little more melody here and
there. Short and sweet, the track delivers the goods effectively. ‘Worlds Built to Deceive’ makes good
use of the two guitar set up as tasteful riffing abounds. ‘The Monotonous Distant Scream’ boasts
a clean intro to go with the slow burning bulk of this lengthy and impressive
track. ‘Future Shock’ gives
us nigh on five minutes of carnage, then a gap ensues before a cool outro that
bookends the album nicely. Guitars wail triumphantly- as well they should. This
is a great thrash album that is modern but with respectful nods to the past-
and not necessarily the bands you might think either. Think Nuclear Assault, ST
and to a lesser extent the Teutonic trio of thrash, rather then any of the big
four. A good album that is well worth checking out.
Words by: Richard Maw
