"Panic Prayer" is an EP release by US death/thrash metal act Inhuman Condition. The EP was released through Listenable Insanity Records in July 2023. It´s the follow-up release to Inhuman Condition´s second full-length studio album "Fearsick" from Jule 2022, although the two releases are bridged by the August 2022 "Covers" EP, which features covers of artists like Death, Metallica, and Faith No More. "Panic Prayer" features three new original tracks, a cover of "Godzilla" by Blue Öyster Cult, and four live tracks, which in their original studio versions appear on the band´s first two full-length studio albums.
Stylistically the three new original tracks continue the powerful and raw death/thrash metal style of the two preceding albums. It´s music which can´t be called either death metal or thrash metal, but features elements from both genres. Drummer/lead vocalist Jeramie Kling has a commanding and raw growling delivery which is fully intelligble and the music is loaded with raw heavy riffs and powerful pounding drumming. It´s music designed for a live environment and I can almost see the mosh pits and headbanging crowds before my eyes.
"Godzilla" was originally one of the greatest hits of Blue Öyster Cult (the opening track from their 1977 fifth full-length studio album "Spectres") and it´s given the death/thrash treatment here, and actually blends in pretty well with the original material, which means that Inhuman Condition have managed to put their own spin on the track, which in my opinion should always be the primary objective when covering the music of another artist.
The live tracks feature a relatively raw sound quality but I wouldn´t call the sound lo-fi. It just sounds very authentic and a bit like someone in the back recorded the show. So, it´s not bootleg quality but only just a notch better than that. Overall "Panic Prayer" is a good quality release featuring enough quality material to warrant a purchase. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.
