Dew-Scented - Impact
2003 - Nuclear Blast Records
By Philip Whitehouse
Go to the
Nuclear Blast Records website.
Dew-Scented are rapidly becoming thrash metal's answer to Mortician - admirably consistent, seemingly unwilling to consider altering their formula but instead perfectly content to continue along their chosen path. 'Impact' is the Teutonic thrasher's fifth album, and again it consists of The Haunted/Slayer-esque, high velocity brutal thrash metal anthems played with 100% conviction. It would be easy to criticise Dew-Scented for sticking so rigidly to the thrash metal template, but frankly, I couldn't care less when the results sound this good.
Drums are pounded with a near-psychotic intensity as riffs charge from the speakers like a stampeding horde of amphetamine-addled cheetahs, the pace only letting up to signal a pleasing if not particularly mindblowing lead break or stomping, mid-tempo mosh passage. Over all this, Leif Jensen bellows the vocals with such force, one could easily imagine the cords on his neck stretching almost as hard as the veins in his temple must be pulsing. On such a remarkably consistent album, it's difficult to pick out the best tracks, but my vote would probably go to 'Destination Hell' for the best solo and the preceeding drum roll, and to 'Down My Neck' for the closing segments, which gradually slow down the riffs to a grinding halt, thus making the full-tilt riffage of the next track even more intense.
If you're after originality or experimentation in your thrash, then you're probably out of luck because even Voivod have reined in their more progressive tendencies these days... however, if you want a solid, convincing assault on your senses, you could do a lot worse than purchase 'Impact'... or, indeed, any of Dew-Scented's work.
7.5/10
2003 - Nuclear Blast Records
By Philip Whitehouse
Go to the
Nuclear Blast Records website.
Dew-Scented are rapidly becoming thrash metal's answer to Mortician - admirably consistent, seemingly unwilling to consider altering their formula but instead perfectly content to continue along their chosen path. 'Impact' is the Teutonic thrasher's fifth album, and again it consists of The Haunted/Slayer-esque, high velocity brutal thrash metal anthems played with 100% conviction. It would be easy to criticise Dew-Scented for sticking so rigidly to the thrash metal template, but frankly, I couldn't care less when the results sound this good.
Drums are pounded with a near-psychotic intensity as riffs charge from the speakers like a stampeding horde of amphetamine-addled cheetahs, the pace only letting up to signal a pleasing if not particularly mindblowing lead break or stomping, mid-tempo mosh passage. Over all this, Leif Jensen bellows the vocals with such force, one could easily imagine the cords on his neck stretching almost as hard as the veins in his temple must be pulsing. On such a remarkably consistent album, it's difficult to pick out the best tracks, but my vote would probably go to 'Destination Hell' for the best solo and the preceeding drum roll, and to 'Down My Neck' for the closing segments, which gradually slow down the riffs to a grinding halt, thus making the full-tilt riffage of the next track even more intense.
If you're after originality or experimentation in your thrash, then you're probably out of luck because even Voivod have reined in their more progressive tendencies these days... however, if you want a solid, convincing assault on your senses, you could do a lot worse than purchase 'Impact'... or, indeed, any of Dew-Scented's work.
7.5/10
