I reviewing Salt Lake City thrashers Deathblow a while ago. Their The Other Side of Darkness EP was riotous thrashing five tracks and when their latest effort, Demolition Deployment, came to my attention, I jumped at the chance to review it.
The first impressions of Demolition Deployment start with its striking artwork and new design of Deathblow’s logo. The new logo complements the artwork well which overall has a very dark feel which hints at what’s to come when the music starts.
The EP is comprised of its title track, “Implements of Destruction” and a cover of Motörhead’s “Mean Machine”. “Demolition Deployment” starts off with a simple moody-sounding harmonised riff on the strings with some cymbal shimmers behind them. This then builds through a chugging riff to an all-out thrashfest with a clever re-take on the intro riff in the middle of the song. There’s plenty to offer riff-wise throughout the song with tempo changes galore and subtle harmonised flavours throughout to keep the music interesting and moving forward.
“Implements of Destruction” begins instantaneously with it’s warp-speed thrashing riffs. The speed and intensity barely lets up throughout the first half of the song, forcing heads to bang to its pounding thrash assault. The second part of the song chugs along with more of a half time feel while the guitar solo shreds above followed by eerie whispers and a return to the darker-sounding riffs that opened the EP. “Mean Machine” stays true to the original song, Deathblow’s heavier guitar tone and speed boost lending themselves well to the song. Given the moody feel that the original songs on Demolition Deployment, “Mean Machine” feels a little out of place with its more upbeat sound however it’s a fun cover tune and the band have done it well.
Deathblow’s latest EP Demolition Deployment shows a growth in the band’s sound. The songwriting is more cohesive than before and feels a lot more mature than their previous efforts. The songs are sure to go down well live and incite raging mosh pits with their breakneck thrashing and crushing mid-tempo sections. It’s a great taste of what’s to come and I’m eagerly looking forward to their forthcoming second LP which is expected to be released this year.
Score: 7/10
Demolition Deployment and Deathblow’s previous releases, The Other Side of Darkness and Prognosis Negative, are available on CD, as a digital , or for streaming via the band’s Bandcamp page.
