Black Fast – Spectre of Ruin

Black Fast
Spectre of Ruin
Entertainment One
★★★★

From the start, Black Fast waists no time expressing just exactly who they are. “Cloak of Lies” kicks off Spectre of Ruin with white knuckle fury, cranking out thrash metal with such ferocity that it nestles up against At The Gates controlled chaos while exemplifying their core.

Black Fast are contrived to be dangerous from their persona down to the artwork. I love how this St. Louis group can take the essence of thrash, push it past its prime and not make it stale. There is a degree of antics involved in the construction of thrash metal. On “Mist of Ruin” and “Scarecrow and Spectre,” they throw convention out the window and billow up a barrage of extreme metal motives that act like gale force winds. Again, no build up. . . no introductions, they just lay into it—confidence.

Black Fast – Cloak of Lies

“Crescent Aberration” is the perfect example of this. On one level you have Aaron Akin growling shockwave-induced lyrics at you. A subsequent level has the guitars swirling around a consistently thrash-heavy rhythm. And then you have the final level of double-bass drum clicks moving at lightning speed. Three-and-a half minutes congeals with every note barrelling into your senses.

“Temple of Leviathan” pulls in from mythological ideology to postulate their own mythical being, pulling forth godlike solo work that appears throughout the album. Each member pulls so much weight that strength in numbers is a key to how this band excels.

Don’t expect to sift through one ounce of filler. Spectre of Ruin does exactly what it is supposed to do, blow you away in 21st Century fashion while never losing sight of its foundation. It’s refreshing to see Black Fast carry on the tradition while putting their own signature style into it. If you want a metal album that gets to the point and fulfills your demands, this is it.