While they have been active since 1997, the unsigned quartet from the San Francisco Bay Area has never put out a full-length CD. Coming into this year, the thrash metal band had released four demos, an EP back in 1998 and a self-titled compilation album in 2001. Continuing the trend yet again, Millennial Delusions is their new, six-track EP. It’s their first release since 2006’s demo, MMVI.
Getting underway with the hardest tune on the disc is “War To Survive.” Lance Lea does a somewhat decent job on the drums but, to be fair, it’s nothing you haven’t already heard before. What did stand out to me, however, were the violent lyrics sung by Judd Henry Mason. Just before the 2:30 mark on the next listing “Apes Of Fear,” Mark Lamb throws a devastating guitar solo right at you, making it one of the highlights on the CD. As good as Lamb was on the previous track, Terry Goss manages to one-up him on “Mourn Again,” a brutalizing, six-minute song that Goss controls with his bass and guitar solo.
The next two tracks aren’t particularly favorable, however. “The Hack” starts and ends pretty well but all of that in-between is just a little too light for my taste. “Mountain” just doesn’t seem too creative, as it basically keeps the same pace throughout, lacking any excitement. Ending on a relatively high note, “Deadly Divisions” is a short, yet impressive instrumental.
For their first release in nearly five years, you’d like to see something a little more complex. The talent is there for sure, it’s just a matter of getting the guys to click on all cylinders.
In A Word: Acceptable
