Onslaught

Fifteen years removed from their last record, Onslaught return to the thrash metal scene with the Andy Sneap-produced Killing Peace. Sneap’s fingerprints are all over this record, which reaffirms that old school thrash can sound pretty damn good in the modern metal landscape — Sneap also produced Exodus’ amazing return, Tempo of the Damned. Although one would think that over that 15 –year period these Brits would be able to pen something a little more revolutionary, this seems to be the dilemma with being a "traditional” band in modern times: reinvention is a limited process. Slayer failed to do so with their recent, and somewhat disappointing, Christ Illusion album; Onslaught, however, have stuck to a classic songwriting formula. The album sounds more like an Exodus record than a Hanneman/King concoction and presents supremely cheesy and immature lyrics, but that’s where the fun lies. Killing Peace is not a vain attempt at reinventing the wheel but more of a salute to the long-gone days of ’80s thrash. If this is how thrash metal kings of old have a midlife crisis, then turning 40 is going to be awesome.