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FLAMES OF WRATH
Heaven Atop The Skulls

Self-released (2018)
Rating: 6.5/10

It’s so rewarding to find new thrash acts from places which aren’t exactly a hot-bed for the genre. With Flames Of Wrath, we travel to Tunisia for this admirable debut album from Younes Azouzi (vocals and rhythm guitar), Zayneb Korbi (lead guitar), Wacim “Flamme” Khayachi (bass) and Amine Frikha (drums).

For the record, these guys formed in 2013 and have struggled to get where they are today, and so I’m thankful that such a release has landed in my hands.

Heaven Atop The Skulls can best be described as melodic thrash metal, but it’s not ruined by humour or production gloss. What we get is a rugged vocal snarl from Azouzi and a batch of straight up, no frills thrash songs that chug nicely – imagine if you will, although it’s familiar, a meeting of Slayer and the blazing Teutonic style. So, we get plenty of faster, more malicious streaks, but there’s also a strong lacing which one will hear on numerous current thrash records.

The riffs are easy on the ears, the drumming is tight and the bass plays well. Of the nine tracks offered, there’s the usual short introduction before we are treated to the likes of the Anthrax-styled chug of ‘Sermon For The Dead’, the bass lead grumble of ‘Bloodthirsty Preacher’ which boasts a punky edge, the slow-building intensity of ‘Apocalyptic Mayhem’ which soon gathers pace to become an out and out Teutonic trailblazer, and my favourite tune, ‘The Pharaoh’s Decree’, which rattles with promise due to that hammering percussion and clanking bass.

Throughout, there’s a consistent level of no frills thrash. Okay, so the vocals aren’t exactly the star of the show; Azouzi’s style doesn’t offer anything new or all that forceful, but they do snarl in comfort alongside the rest of the noise, showcased on the likes of the title track which works well with its persistent drum nods and that steady fizz.

I’d also like to draw to your attention to the bonus track ‘Sidi Mansour’, a cover based on a traditional Tunisia folk song, which has a doomy trudge and killer hook. The way the track is constructed is impressive and presents us with some excellent guitar work and the bass meanders nicely to create a sense of the epic.

It’s difficult not to be stirred by some of the emotions this record relays, because while it does at times feel a tad bereft of colour, its insistence upon being a straight up, yet nicely paced opus will win most over. It couldn’t have been easy for the guys to have got to this stage, and I look forward to their next release.

Neil Arnold

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