[avatar =”Beze” size=”50″ align=”left” /]So confession time, I had never actually heard of Revolted Masses before listening to The Age of Descent, their second full length opus but that probably says more about me.
Hailing from Athens and formed in 2008, Revolted Masses are modern thrash (with hints of death) outfit who clearly use the political strife over recent years in their motherland as a key influence on their message. Track titles such as “Bite the Hand that Feeds” and “Ruled by Rats” leave you under no illusion of this. Musically, they neatly blend old school thrash with touches of more modern death metal, with a few more Avant Garde moments such as the oriental/eastern interludes on tracks such as “Matricide” and “Discrimination”.
There are clear influences on this album from more modern thrash/death names such as Revocation and Lamb of God to dare I say older classic forefathers such as Metallica and even Iron Maiden at times (but hey who doesn’t). That said, this is no bad thing and the band carry this off well particularly with the technically excellent Vaggelis Tehodorakis and Kostas Stahopolous on axe duty. Both really drive the agenda here to deliver an album full of heavy, foot stomping riffs, catchy hooks, and a nice dash of whistle along solos, all intertwined with that most magical ingredients – melody, something which alas seems to be missing from many modern Thrash/Death releases.
There is a fluidity to the music and a nice blend of pace at work on most tracks, combining frenetic interludes with slower more melodic breaks which keep you interested. The mid-paced and atmospheric “Severed Aphrodite” being the exception but is no less enjoyable for it.
The album was produced by the band themselves and they have done a decent job and although at times perhaps a bit unrefined, it gives an organic and enjoyable feel to proceedings. Having said that, I think one ingredient lets the album down somewhat and that is the vocal delivery. It seems, alas like so many recent outfits, to major on the throat wrenching variety which I think does nothing to add to the complexity and dexterity at show elsewhere on the album. That said, this is a thoroughly enjoyable offering and I shall certainly be keeping an eye out for these guys in future.
The Age of Descent was released on Inverse Records on November 13th.
Revolted Masses: facebook | youtube | bandcamp
