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DEATHHAMMER “Crimson Dawn”
DEATHHAMMER “Crimson Dawn”
By Dr. Abner Mality
Norway’s raucous DEATHHAMMER is back in town and stirring up the fires of hell with their ancient Germanic thrash. They are a lovable bunch sure to satisfy undemanding thrash fans, but at this point, if you’ve heard one DEATHHAMMER album, you’ve pretty much heard them all.
That sounds kind of harsh, but it’s true. These guys (down to a 2 piece now) can certainly scratch an itch for rabid thrash, but the albums show no real change or development, just changes in production quality. For “Crimson Dawn”, the production is pretty darn good...old school but very clear. You certainly don’t have to be very original in the thrash genre, but when your songs all start to blur together into a big sticky mass, then a shot of something is needed. Plus, I am REAL tired of those constantly yelping high pitched vocals. Come on, man, enough is enough! I was burned out on the same yelp by the middle of the album! Even DESTRUCTION didn’t do it so much and they pretty much invented that vocal style!
As far as the good stuff goes, you just can’t argue with rabid neck-breakers like “Satan’s Sword” (with a bit of a US power-thrash feel to it) and the take-no-prisoners “Legacy of Pain”. The dudes know what they are capable of. The almost 9 minute epic “Into the Blackness of Hell” could have been a train wreck but winds up pretty good and has the sole sign of something different: the soloing has a very “elegant” feel to it that’s more than just throwing speed bombs.
DEATHHAMMER is very reliable but also very formulaic. Proceed according to your tastes.
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