Time Signature Thrashing it up the Italian way...

Genre: speed / thrash metal

Perhaps the name Explorer does not exactly scream thrash metal or speed metal, but do not let that fool you. This Italian band know how to thrash shit up.

The first two songs 'Tell Me (What you Want)' and 'Just Escape' are more in the vein of speed metal and bear some similarities to early Metallica and Megadeth, but the third track 'Into the Pub (With No Exit)' changes the tone a bit, as this one is a fast and brutal thrash metal affair. the next two tracks fall somewhere between the styles of the first three songs on the album, while 'In the Dark' is surprisingly melodic, and the ultra-fast 'Earth Massacre' picks up where 'Into the Pub (With No Exit)' left off. 'Run Away from the Cross' is the heaviest track on the album, but still features some fast parts.

The common denominator here is of course speed. The songs on the album are all fast, and the band has the chops to pull it off. There are some rock 'n' roll-ish elements every now and then, and the the more traditional speed metal songs have the same hard rock elements that Dave Mustaine would make use off on his earliest outings with Megadeth. This all works very well. The production is not at all polished, which might turn some people off, while others might find it authentic.

"Shout in the Fog" is a a fine speed metal outing that should appeal to fans of the earliest incarnations of thrash metal.