LIGHT THE MATCH! Setting the scene ablaze, the rough and rowdy OVERKILL have reappeared to bludgeon your ears with their twentieth, that’s right, twentieth studio album: SCORCHED. For over 3 and a half decades their bottom line crazy method of thrash has produced some of the most signature moments in the world of metal. Now in the latter half of their career, all the experience is showing face with SCORCHED as it somehow rings more mature, refined, and embellished with hints of more than just thrash metal.
Delving into writing right at the onset of 2020’s pandemic provoked not just inspiration, but the ability to move through the album making process with ease and lack of pressure. Taking over two and a half years to reach completion, SCORCHED absorbed a ton of the energy from the ups and downs of the daily grind and contemporary turmoil.
The end result is something born of heaviness, wisdom, and violent, melodic energy. The title track is an explosive representation of a 35 year history of burnin’ things up along with The Surgeon, which is also Overkill 101. Opening with the chunk and clunk of a classic DD Verni bass line, it breaks open into machine gun vocals racing round and round with the guitar to see who tires first. There’s also an undeniable bluesy element that develops heavily in certain songs. Tracks like ‘Wicked Place’ and ‘Fever’ are ripe with what feels like old school Rock N Roll. (Nuclear Blast)
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