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WARBRINGER
Wrath And Ruin
2025 Napalm Records

As California-based thrashers WARBRINGER celebrate 20 years as a band, they have returned with a blistering new album titled Wrath and Ruin, their seventh overall (and sixth with a 'W' title). It's hard to believe it's been almost five years since the classic Weapons of Tomorrow was released. The band is comprised of: vocalist/lyricist John Kevill, guitarists Chase Becker and Adam Carroll, bassist Chase Bryant and drummer Carlos Cruz.

True to their name, WARBRINGER brings you eight new anthems about war, technology, frustration and strife. The band describes the album as "indulging in the darker elements of (our) sound, for an uncompromising and unflinching exploration of life's most bitter pills". The songs are tighter, bleaker, and this is one of their best sounding albums thus far. The opening track is "The Sword and The Cross", (the second single released from the album) which draws inspiration from the Crusades. This is an exceptional opening track that seems grander in scope than previous openers. There is a lyric video for this song available on Youtube. "A Better World" was the first single released from the album (check out the performance video online). This song predicts a bleak future and is an all-out thrash assault on the senses. The lyrics were inspired by front-man John Kevill's interaction with a therapist, which ultimately brought him no relief about the future of society and his own place in it. "Neuromancer" was inspired by William Gibson's underground dystopian 1984 novel of the same name. The song has several cool twists and turns musically, and lyrically embraces the 'human interfacing with computer' concept of the novel. "The Jackhammer" is about taking life's frustrations out on an unsuspecting victim amongst inner city struggles, using a jackhammer as the murder weapon. Musically, the track is among the most neck-snapping on the album. The breakdown in the second half of the song will be a future moshpit classic moment without question.

What I think is one of the band's most important songs career-wise thus far is the mini-epic "Through A Glass, Darkly", (video on KNAC.COM HERE) which features music written by Cruz and lyrics by Kevill. The song was inspired by the 1922 poem of the same name, written by General George S. Patton, who believed himself to have lived previous lives and suffered deaths in combat during numerous historic battles. The poem references some of history's greatest battles, such as The Siege of Tyre, The Battle of Crecy in the Hundred Years War, and The Battle of Waterloo, among others. The lyrics do the poem justice and the music adds the necessary gravitas as well; this is a standout track for sure. "Strike From The Sky" is one of the speedier tracks on the album, and opens with a trademark John Kevill scream; his higher register is utilized with cutthroat precision throughout this song. The shout-along chorus will be a crowd pleaser. "Cult of Air" has a clean guitar intro, insane blast beats, and a lengthy solo section. The lyrics describe being trapped inside an invisible cage of AI surveillance, financial troubles, and lost hope. At nearly seven minutes, the song is the longest and probably the most complex track on the album. The album closes with "The Last of My Kind", a song about resisting oppression. It begins with a somber strings/piano intro, and quickly relents into a full-speed melodeath thrash number that doesn't let up for five minutes.

Wrath and Ruin's run time is about 40 minutes, which is characteristic of how long most of WARBRINGER's albums have been thus far (except Weapons of Tomorrow, which clocked in around 50 minutes). The album leaves you wanting more, which is a good thing. These songs waste absolutely none of your time; any fat has been trimmed away. WARBRINGER continues to revive the thrash genre, both in referencing past bands, but also by adding new ingredients to the mix. The band is firing on all cylinders here and are an incredibly formidable unit. I think as time passes, fans will realize just how rock solid this album is. It took a little time for appreciation of Weapons of Tomorrow to stick, and now it's time for Wrath and Ruin to take that place on the pedestal. The six-panel digisleeve and 12-page booklet make a nice package. Also included is a bonus disc of 15 live tracks recorded in Europe in 2023 that is over 73 minutes long. It demonstrates just how lethal this band is in a live setting. This could be sold separately, but here it is included at a nominal price and well worth your investment. Overall, Wrath and Ruin is one of my favorite albums of the year so far, and is recommended to thrash and metal fans everywhere.

4.6 Out Of 5.0