Power Trip
“Manifest Decimation”
Crossover Thrash Metal
Southern Lord Records
Release Date: June 11, 2013
Rating: 9.5/10
When I’m thinking thrash, I’m thinking Slayer. I’m thinking old Metallica. I’m thinking Megadeth, Nuclear Assault, Anthrax, Sacred Reich, Vio-Lence, Possessed, Metal Church, Morbid Saint, etc. I’m thinking circle pits and clenched fists. I’m thinking banging heads, long hair, black shirts, and pure speed. Whether it’s crossover or blackened, modern or old school, a good thrash metal band never fails to evoke some or all of these images (maybe with a little personal touch to boot). With an instant classic in Manifest Decimation, Power Trip evokes all these images through desperate, reverberating vocals; insane riffage, and ass-kicking solos as they add their own epic chapter to the modern crossover/thrash movement.
From beginning to end, this LP will absolutely blow you away. They’ve exceeded any and all expectations, as high as they were. The pure, dark energy, thoroughly unrelenting and enthralling, is almost incomparable to any of the band’s peers in both the thrash and hardcore scene. Punishing gang shouts and furious grooves on bangers like “Crossbreaker” emphasize that despite this record’s metallic tendencies, they do in fact still have that hardcore sensibility, while tracks like “Power Trip” showcase some seriously breakneck speed. The distant, raspy vocals might remind a listener of Possessed, while the instrumentation leans more towards Nuclear Assault or Municipal Waste. If that doesn’t equate to the perfect mix of blackened darkness and volatile speed, I don’t know what would.
Overall, as a modern crossover/thrash LP, Manifest Decimation stands out as both exceptionally dark and punishingly aggressive. It’s just as furiously foreboding as any old-school classic, and just as streamlined and focused as any modern metallic hardcore release. But it’s clear that Power Trip has taken a step in a very “thrash” direction, and is sure to have diehard fans headbanging all over the place for years to come.
FFO: Nuclear Assault, Possessed, Municipal Waste
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