2nd October 2024

Review: “Inside The Sickened Mind” by Thrasherwolf

Cutting adrift 2022 single “A Thousand Eyes” as standalone, a new album from a new line up has been offered up to appease the Wolf Pack who have been scratching at the door of Thrasherwolf and baying for blood. In truth the current line up has been in place since 2021, as bassist Alex Mitsis exited stage left after a two year stint, swiftly followed by original drummer Billy Lucas who had been around since 2016. Their replacements in bassist Raimonds Dobelis and drummer Zaq Razaq have paid their dues, touring the bands debut album “We Are Revolution” since their arrival and leaving their mark on audiences with classic genre themes of Destruction, Fantasy and Mental illness. Founding members Daniel Lucas on guitars and vocals and guitarist Jack Saunders remain the driving force behind the group with “Inside The Sickness” their next burnt offering. Adorned by cover artwork from Andrei Bouzikov (Municipal Waste, Nervosa, Autopsy) having been recorded with Andy Brook at The Brook Studios (Status Quo, Subhumans, Restarts) and mastered by Patrick W Engel (Candlemass, Destruction, Sodom), have they managed to capture their infamous live energy?

Keeping their tarot cards close to their collective chests Thrasherwolf offered up just two advanced singles from “Inside The Sickness” which just so happen to be the first two tracks on the album. Coincidence? Unlikely. From a thematic standpoint “Final Act Of Aggression” bridges the gap from the bands debut album “We Are Revolution” with a lyrical narrative about oppressed individuals reaching breaking point and rising up to fight back against the powers that be. Sonically there has been a subtle evolution with “Ride The Lightning” era Metallica stylings clearly part of the palette as Lucas chants “Act!” over old school Thrash riffs. A ripper of an extended solo from Saunders over rampaging drums is an adrenaline fuelled moment of bliss and it has to be said that Brooks deserves a lot of credit. He’s given the album a classic 80’s Bay Area Thrash sound by nailing the mix and in all honesty if you heard the album blind you might not even realise it wasn’t recorded then and there.

The bass from Dobelis is heavier in the mix during the chant-a-long choruses of “G.B.H. (Gratuitous Bodily Harm)“, giving it a nice clanky quality as the band dabble with tempo shifts. A Groove Thrash bridge has plenty of verve and swagger about it, demonstrating that the band have a lot of confidence in the strength of the material, before another extended face melter of a solo brings a punchy number to a fitting conclusion. The tornado of riffs shows no sign of abating with “Hanging House” which takes a leaf from the book so Solitary with aggression levels reaching overdrive, the perfectly executed false ending mid track exactly what the edge of the seat was made for. What’s interesting about this one is that the lyrical narrative has flavours of Wednesday 13 or Alice Cooper about it with some Hammer Horror lines but there is no disputing the sound of pure unadulterated Thrash. Electrifying lead guitars and shriller vocal moments give “Scream Till Death” another dimension, a bass solo in the final third a thing of beauty.

Skilfully avoiding the soft centre, Thrasherwolf go hell for leather with the Speed Thrash inspired “Shameless Loser“. A classically themed track about drink and drugs whilst dealing with inner demons, it’s more of an excuse for a bar fight than wow is me. If only all drunken debauchery was this good. A solid hook and a teeth-grinding obsession, it’s a fine example of just how far the band have come since their last album. The quartet are now a lean, mean fighting machine ready for twelve rounds of bare knuckle boxing with their new found power. Proving there is more to them than meets the ear, “Consumed” has the distinctive air of Pantera in its delicious Groove Metal riffs that command the raising of the horns or a poison chalice in respect. Only Trendkill do Groove Thrash to this level in the hear and now. How about a dark and melodic Thrash ballad? “Haunted” is that song, Lucas demonstrating a greater vocal range with some American accented almost spoken word style cleans have a dull ache about them. A punchy chorus carries weight, grit and integrity while the progression of the track executed to perfection.

An album this good needs a grand finale so it’s apt that the band chose title track “Inside The Sickened Mind” to round it off in style. Effectively split into four movements, a barbed opening verse sets the scene for a rampaging second phase at twice the speed. The drop off for a theatrical mid section laced with tension is sublime with the feel of something Ozzy Osbourne influenced before rising into flamboyant final segment of total Thrash annihilation. Everything is impeccably balanced so that while this final cut is the bands most expansive it doesn’t stray too far from the left hand path. All in all, multi-faceted album with memorable choruses, earworm riffs and classy melodic progressions throughout, “Inside The Sickened Mind” isn’t just a sophomore album. It’s a step up to the big leagues that some might not have thought the Londoners didn’t have in them. [8.5/10]

Track Listing