J-Man Combining extreme thrash metal with the most primitive of old school death metal, the German veterans in Witchburner certainly know how to craft a release that harkens back to the thrash scene of the late eighties' and early nineties'. With 2013's Bloodthirsty Eyes - the band's seventh full length observation - Witchburner doesn't waste any time fooling around with modern gimmicks, and instead focuses on a full-on assault of old school thrash metal reminiscent of what the genre sounded like when Witchburner first formed back in 1992. Bloodthirsty Eyes is clearly the result of years of experience and dedication to extreme music, and though the album doesn't do very much to stand out from the crowd, its strong execution makes for a recommended listen.

The style of music on Bloodthirsty Eyes draws from the extreme thrash of bands like Kreator and Slayer, and also incorporates a few early death metal influences from acts like Death (during the Scream Bloody Gore era) and Obituary. A large portion of Witchburner's death metal influence is due to Pino Hecker's harsh vocals, which are reminiscent of a young Chuck Schuldiner or Patrick Mameli. It's a vocal delivery that suits the aggressive nature of the music perfectly. Bloodthirsty Eyes is a rather short album, clocking in at around 35 minutes, but it does remain powerful and entertaining the entire way through; personally, I prefer albums to be around this length when we're talking about such aggressive music.

My biggest gripe with Bloodthirsty Eyes is that, whilst it is very entertaining while it's playing, the album doesn't leave much of a lasting impression on its listener. Witchburner doesn't explore any uncharted territory here, but thankfully the high quality of the album's riffs and musicianship still make for an enjoyable listen. Although not terribly inventive, Bloodthirsty Eyes is a well-executed old school thrash metal assault that fans of the genre should investigate.

Time Signature Prepare for a violent thrash onslaught...

Genre: thrash metal

Having been at it since the early 1992, the German thrashers in Witchburner have lived through the grunge-infested '90s and the metalcore-soiled '00s 8not to mention the nu metal that disgraced the scene in between), and now they are ready to punish your ears for the seventh time (not counting EPs and demos) with they latest album "Blood Thirsty Eyes".

Stylistically, we are dealing with straight up aggressive old school thrash metal with a hint of death metal (especially in the harsh vocals, which sound quite similar to Patrick Mameli in the heyday of Pestilence). And almost coming in from left field are the crust-punk elements in "Never Surrender" which actually work brilliantly, I must say.

Drawing on the proto-death of early Kreator, and combining it with an up-to-date sound, Witchburner have not exactly created a revolutionary or innovative album. That was probably not what they were aiming for anyway. They were aiming for a kick-ass thrashfest, and a kick-ass thrashfest is what you get. Aggressive riff upon aggressive riff, chaotic solo upon chaotic solo, and fast drum beat upon fast drum beat, this album delivers the goods, and should definitely leave any thrash-fan happy.

Fans of old school thrash riffage and aggression galore are going to love this thrashfest of an album. Now, will you excuse me while I go out and brutally murder some innocent people.