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E-FORCE
Demonikhol

Mausoleum (2015)
Rating: 9/10

I really enjoyed 2014’s The Curse… opus from E-Force; the band put together in 2001 by ex-Voivod shouter Eric Forrest. And so I was looking forward to this new album, and left wondering once again just why these guys aren’t more popular within the thrash metal field, because while the genre is constantly being swamped by mediocre acts aping the past, E-Force just go for the throat and leave you gasping for air as your jugular is removed and blood spurts back into the gaping wound for you to choke on.

Demonikhol offers up 11 tracks, and each one is a scathing beast of ferocity and hostility; in fact, everything a thrash fan wants from a thrash metal record. And just to make sure your ears are dissected, lacerated, and amputated in grisly fashion, Forrest has enlisted the talents of five guitarists to share the leads on the record, those chosen few being Sacrifice’s Rob Urbinati, Monument’s Dan Baune, Exorcizphobia’s Tomáš Skořepa, Yotangor’s Vincent Agar and the neo-classical talents of Antonello Gilliberto.

Time then to step into this tour de force of a thrash metal composition, and once again be blitzed by the industrial-tinged madness this platter has to offer. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again; it’s no wonder Forrest fitted into the Voivod framework so well, because again he’s come up with a myriad of spiky rhythms, snarling structures and chaotic grooves which will put your faith back into thrash metal immediately.

Of course, Forrest couldn’t create such an infrastructure without the drum clanks of Krof who rumbles along like some wayward, maniacal golem which enables this cold, harsh yet somehow fiery and angry thrash composition to truly come to life. For me, once the brief instrumental intro (‘Apéro’) is out of the way, we’re transported into that violent Voivod-esque landscape of hammering, clanking, cluttering and smoking scrapyard of hostility – E-Force tinging their sound with a discordant, industrialised smokiness bringing to mind the dry energy of Sadus and more obscure lethal tendencies of Anacrusis.

This is the sort of thrash metal I crave, with flecks of complexity, streaks of the unorthodox, but always pure (and impure!) to those old school thrash values where as a beast this has no interest in trend. Instead, we get those grating, grey riffs, bony angular drums and Forrest’s mocking sneers. But this time round, due to the injection of varying lead guitar talents, it’s as if we’re hearing one of those cult technical thrash metal masterpieces of the late 80s; the sort of menacing and ultra-cool manifestations which passed many by but remained close to the hearts of those who knew.

For me, and some will disagree, E-Force’s latest abomination even hints at the complex ferocity of Death circa-The Sound Of Perseverance (1998), where mainman Chuck Schuldiner altered his vocal style from gore-soaked coughs to dry, harsh yelps. Forrest brings the same arrogant menace to the table, ‘Grievance’ using speed yet technical prowess to the point where I’m constantly replaying this violent gem only to realise it’s my job to play the rest of the album!

And so we come to another host of razor-backed killers; the punked up gallop of ‘Double Edged Sword’ with its lashing bass and insistent droning guitar before it resorts to a volatile chug, and then there’s the whiplash of ‘Invasion’, which is catchy in its chords and juddering in its skin cracks. For me, its barbed, techno-metal at its finest – nifty, passionate and derisive.

That scornful prowess just keeps on coming. ‘Debauchery’ offers up a slab of chugging mosh-metal until the solo pierces the skin and the vocal lowers itself to a deathly grunt, while ‘The Day After’ is an unexpected twist; a smouldering reflection to a backdrop of industrialised hums. Elsewhere, ‘Ultimatum’, ‘Insidious’ and the title track leave the ears sore and scabbed. ‘Demonikhol’ is a harsh, scathing featurette of cold, grey abrasive guitars, and Forrest’s nasty snarl all enshrouded within that opening melodic stomp. ‘Insidious’ hints at traditional metal values and ‘Ultimatum’ gets its hooks in immediately by way of a catchy lick and further grating menace.

But there’s still two more tunes to go. The chugging ‘State Of Delusion’ is another accessible strain boasting Krof’s heavy hitting, while closer ‘Last Call’ is a fantastic industrialised throb and nothing more, and yet its rounds off the cyber-punk tone of this rasping, grainy and above all seething thrash record which will leave you feeling as if you’ve spent the night with a Brillo pad.

With so many of the so-called thrash giants forgetting their roots and incorporating too much watery melody into their sound over the last few decades, E-Force is a timely reminder as to what thrash metal is all about. Demonikhol just doesn’t conform; instead, it entangles, ensnares, nips, rips, snips, grips, pinches, slashes, dices, lashes and tears before it leaves you rusty around the edges. There’s nothing showy here in spite of the lethal injections of the soloists; Forrest has instead upped the ante and created a thrash metal masterpiece that mocks, rocks and above all shocks the system by way of industrialised thrash strength.

Neil Arnold

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