Review: “Rotten Trajectory” by Deathblow

“Three brand new brain ripping thrash metal songs to leave your eardrums bleeding” ~ Deathblow

Salt Lake City Utah Thrash quartet Deathblow who affectionally refer to themselves as Holger the Horrible, Smelly, Pauly and Grave Robber have been on our radar since their album 2014 “Prognosis Negative” caught our attention. A spitting, snarling tornado of an album that finds them somewhere between “Handle With Care” era Nuclear Assault and “Manifest Decimation” by Power Trip, that record found them blending Thrash songs with Death Metal and Punk influences while leaving us with a serious case of Tinnitus.

Old school to the core, “Rotten Trajectory” has that classic DIY or DIE sound like it was recorded live on the floor of the studio to capture the band in the moment. The title track is an absolute rampage, politically and socially aware with a solid bass drive in the mid section courtesy of New York. There is one speed. Breakneck. Sonically there are obvious flavours of Municipal Waste in “Pounder” and when leads slide into a duo of back to back fretboard smoking solos you know there are on half measures here. Go hard or go home is the mantra and this is full fat, high caffeine incendiary music that somehow stops short of descending into complete and utter anarchy. Grand finale “In Plain Sight” is sixteen seconds longer than anything else here and barely hauls its drunken ass over the three minute mark with pure face melting fury. Conjuring some atmosphere from somewhere, the band fly on the wings of flamboyant soloing for the majority of this one and it will leave you breathless. Recorded and produced at Archive Recordings by Wes Johnson and adorned by artwork from Nicky Rat (Fuse, The Chisel, Bleeding Brain), this EP has been touted by the band as an appetizer for their next album and it has to be said on this evidence, it’s going to simply f***ing amazing [8/10]

Track Listing

1. Rotten Trajectory
2. Pounder
3. In Plain Sight

“Rotten Trajectory” by Deathblow is out 29th September 2023 via Sewer Mouth Records with pre-orders available over at bandcamp.