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ANNIHILATOR :
ALL FOR YOU

Good old Annihilator, love 'em or hate 'em, you gotta admire them for keeping it real, and never giving in to any bull-shit trends or selling out in any way. Well, some might argue that 1993's "Set The World On Fire" came close, but I don't agree. If you know anything about the band, then you know the band is really just guitarist Jeff Waters with whomever he sees fit to surround himself with at any given time. He is the only remaining member from the classic "Alice In Hell" (’89) and "Never, Neverland" (’90) days. There have been something like five or six vocalists in the last 15 years, but I've lost count. Today's vocalist of the moment is Dave Padden, and I hope he stays for a couple more discs, because man does he ever slay. Both the harsh, and the cleaner vocals are stellar. The album, as usual, showcases fantastic sound, and is balls-out Thrash-Metal all the way. That is except for one little roadblock by the name of "Holding On". This stinky 80s power-ballad (sung by Jeff) comes out of nowhere, and kind of makes you second-guess what CD you have spinning. This should have been saved as something to be used as a b-side, or a Japanese bonus track, as it really breaks the album's flow and feel, not to mention the suck factor. But, that's still nine great tracks out of ten, so you really can't complain too much (but I can take off a full point from the disc's rating). "All For You" is another solid release in the ever-expanding Annihilator catalogue. If ya wanna visit the band on line, check out annihilatormetal.com.
RATING = 7 Thrash-Metal (Released 2004)

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ANNIHILATOR :
SCHIZO DELUXE

Ah, another year, and another Annihilator release hits my desk. ...cool. Well, it seems like Mr. Waters heeded my advice regarding vocalist Dave Padden, as he makes his return appearance here on "Schizo Deluxe". Dave must be feeling pretty good about himself. Singing on two Annihilator CDs in a row is a very rare occurrence, and Dave now finds himself in a pretty damn exclusive club. Anyway let's dig into the disc shall we? It appears that Jeff must have received a lot of flack for his little, shall we say "error in judgement", regarding last year's disc. If you missed that disc, or are too lazy to read the review above, "All For You" had a horrible ballad on it, which stunk up the place worse than grandma did, that time she missed her monthly bath! So, this time out, Jeff has apparently decided to lay waste to any who have dared to doubt his current ability to Thrash like madman. Schizo Deluxe is a pummelling, old-school Trash-Metal platter from start to finish, packed to the rafters with big-ass riffs, and intense guitar solos! That is obviously a huge checkmark on the plus side of the scale, but the album is not without its faults. In Jeff's current, obsessive pursuit of shred, I think a bit of the focus has shifted from, or been sacrificed in the song-writing department. A few of these songs, while being mind-numbing examples of Thrash guitar wizardry, are a bit one-dimensional, and in the end, kind of boring. Songs such as "Drive" and "Invite It" seem like unfinished ideas. It's like he came up with some killer licks to include in a song, and then decided, "fuck it, the licks are the song". Still, there is a lot to love on the album as a whole. The cheese-filled opening track "Maximum Satan" is a blast and a half, and songs like "Pride", "Warbird", and "Clare" are all catchy as hell! Jeff has said that this one is for the fans, and yes, I believe that for the most part, this is what long time fans have been waiting for. If you’ve been looking for some new, no-bullshit Thrash, then this should indeed feed the need.
RATING = 8 Thrash-Metal (Released 2005)

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