By: Richard Maw
Album Type: Full Length
Date Released: 22/02/2019
Label: Nuclear
Blast
Overkill have never made a bad album and
with “The Wings of War” they have made another good one. I expected nothing
less and once again Overkill have delivered
“The Wings of War” CD//DD//LP track
listing:
1. Last Man Standing 5:49
2. Believe In The Fight 5:03
3. Head Of A Pin 5:56
4. Bat Shit Crazy 4:33
5. Distortion 6:09
6. A Mother's Prayer 3:58
7. Welcome To The Garden State 4:42
8. Where Few Dare To Walk 5:25
9. Out On The Road-Kill 4:41
10. Hole In My Soul 4:47
The Review:
Overkill roar back into action two years after
“The
Grinding Wheel”. I reviewed that beast at the time and judged it to be
a continuation of their superb run of form since 2010's “Ironbound”. “The
Grinding Wheel” was somewhat meandering in song structure and perhaps
dipped just a little before the middle of the record in terms of energy and
catchiness.
“The
Wings of War”
sees the band with a new drummer- Jason Bittner of Shadows Fall
fame- who was expected by many to bring the band a new enthusiasm and perhaps
some musical changes. Ron Lipnicki was the best drummer Overkill
had up until his departure and his contributions in terms of energy and
bringing the real thrash back cannot be overstated. It was Lipnicki, in my
view, who played on the band's very best records and his precise and wildly
energetic style was a major plus point from “Immortalis” onwards.
Bittner
brings similar energy and plays a blinder here- lots of fills where the kick
drums reinforce the stick patterns and lots of fills where the hands and feet
answer each other. Bittner is the state of the art in terms of thrash drumming
and the band could not have found a better replacement.
Regarding
the rest of the record, Overkill have continued
to keep their output quality astonishingly high. The first four tracks are
absolute rippers. The opener “Last Man
Standing” builds via a machine like intro to a classic Overkill
thrasher, “Believe In The Fight” is
more varied in tempos but similarly aggressive. “Head of a Pin” starts slower but introduces a familiarly swinging
time feel that Overkill excel at
when they use it. “Bat Shit Crazy”
is a heavy and catchy beast and made for the live arena. So far, business as
usual.
If
“The
Wings of War” differs from recent records it is in song length- only
one track exceeds six minutes and most are concisely under five minutes. “Distortion”, the longest track is also
one that I have not taken to yet; it is slower, meaner, moodier... nothing
wrong with that as I love Overkill's 'different'
albums such as “I Hear Black”- which was a Sabbath influenced
murky metal record. However, the long intro leads to... another intro before
the track starts its insistent mid tempo groove. To be fair, “Distortion” is not a bad track but it
does break up the momentum of the previous 40% of the album. It has a killer
ending, but the hooks here just don't do it for me. The distorted bass that
heralds “A Mother's Prayer” is a much needed wake up call, but again the
track does not thrash as hard as the opening four tracks. It's still thrash,
but with a hefty dose of traditional heavy metal in there as well.
The
comparative energy dip of the preceding two tracks is consigned neatly to the
past when “Welcome To The Garden State”
kicks off after a textbook “Noo Joisey” sample. Overkill excels
at this type of thrash/punk hybrid when they choose to write them. It leaps out
of the speakers and really kicks off the latter half of the record.
Encompassing as it does the band's pride in their home state and their
fuck-you-too attitude it promises to be a big live staple and a fan favourite
at home and abroad. A killer that doesn't take itself too seriously.
The
final three tracks keep the quality high and the material varied. This is not a
straightforward thrash album like, say, “Electric Age” and instead mixes the
band's thrash, groove and Sabbath influenced
material to good effect. “Where Few Dare
To Walk” is a good example of a slower Overkill power house.
It's moody and dark and it WORKS. The track is more heavy metal than thrash and
those seeking an adrenaline hit are pointed to the album opener, but this is
quality metal.
The
band go for the throat on “Out On The
Road-Kill” and turn in a song that would have fitted neatly on 90's crusher
“From
The Underground and Below”. It grooves and hammers its point home with
thrash and finesse- not to mention a killer solo.
The
album closes strongly with “Hole In My
Soul” which features a kind of smorgasbord of the album as a whole- it has
a moody intro, thrash tempos, a fair amount of melody in the vocals and superb
individual performances from all band members. Bittner's drums are mechanically
precise and superbly produced. The triggered sound of previous records is
present here and if you listen to early thrash albums these days, you can hear
just how much extreme metal has benefited from technological advancements in
recording. Verni's bass is as crushing as ever while the guitar duo of Linsk
and Tailer is rock solid as per. Bobby Blitz Ellsworth continues to defy age
and gravity with his soaring screams and is the major recognisable factor in Overkill's sound.
Overall,
then, “The Wings of War” represents a continuation of the run of form
that Overkill have held for the last decade while
also ringing the changes in terms of variety of material. This is a more
melodic and slightly more restrained work than the previous four albums. In my
view, it is as strong as “The Grinding Wheel” but does not
quite reach the godly heights of “Ironbound”, “Electric Age” or “White
Devil Armory”. For a band going since 1980 (!) whose frontman is
pushing 60 years old, the energy levels on display here are incredible. Overkill have never made a bad album and with “The
Wings of War” they have made another good one. I expected nothing less
and once again Overkill have delivered
“The
Wings of War”
is available HERE
