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MASTER
Saints Dispelled

Hammerheart (2024)
Rating: 8/10

With new drummer Peter Bajci on board, the newest platter from the legendary Paul Speckmann-led Master sounds like a band invigorated. Saints Dispelled is still very much classic Master which drips with Speckmann’s ferocious spits and the general serrated death-thrash belligerence.

From the opening chords of ‘Destruction In June’ it’s obvious that Master is as vicious as ever; the snarling bass, the rampant percussion and the scorching axe work, all led into the ears by Speckmann’s hostile snaps. Master knows how to thrash and there are some seriously fast moments on this release. The opening blast of ‘Walk In The Footsteps Of Doom’ and the hostile and frenzied assault of ‘Marred And Diseased’ are great examples, but what I really love about Master is the ability to fuse some great melodies within such spite.

The aforementioned ‘Marred And Diseased’ gallops with a stiff drum and even though the solo seems to squirm wildly there remains a harmonious pinch, something also evident on the hooky ‘Find Your Life’ with its rhythmic pulse before galloping with haste. Meanwhile, ‘The Wiseman’ showcases the deathlier side of the band as Speckmann smirks his way through the words, almost in a mocking, perverse fashion over the devilish riffs.

Master continues to supply vast wallops of thrash n’ death, jagged storms of melodic violence (‘Minds Under Pressure’) and even with the lengthier songs (CD bonus cut ‘Alienation Of Insanity’) the snap is maintained to great effect. Okay, so some tracks could benefit from a trim but who am I to tell Paul Speckmann how to compose a record. Saints Dispelled is masterly devastation once again from the gods of saw-toothed metal
.

Neil Arnold

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