Sodom : "Days of Retribution"

Before I listened to this I went back and gave "Persecution Mania" another listen. These guys guys would be on my top ten bands that influenced black metal list for sure. The German thrash band's were always a little darker and meaner than way was coming out of the Bay Area. They are back to thrashing and you have to think Tom Angelripper who is the sole original member of the band, has some self awareness to the fact they are lauded as being influential to the rise of black metal as there is a slight blackened feel to the opening track. His voice sounds great. These guys are not just dialing it in. They go back to their more Motorhead influenced sound on "Murder One". His voice sounds a little more strained hear, but this might be due to the fact he is trying to "sing" a little more" . Speaking of Motorhead influence they are in no way trying to hide this fact by covering "Ace of Spades" . It has the bass tone and the energy right. This song is pretty easy to play so , some old pros like these guys should obviously nail it without question.

There is more groove than I anticipated coming from these guys going into "Kamikazie Terrorizer" .  This is short lived as the bulk of the song focuses on racing forward at a high thrash velocity and hints at how Sodom might have also influenced a few hard core band's along the way. "Waterboarding" is a pretty powerful song. It is not as preoccupied with speed and takes the time to pound the point into your head. This EP also includes liver versions of " Wachturm" and "the Saw is the Law", but since they appear on other albums and are more of just a bonus, I will not include them for the purpose of this review, but will say they sound good and are pulled off really well, making me want to check out Sodom should they ever hit the States. I think they would make a good opener for Slayer, not that Death Angel and Anthrax are bad choices, in fact I would rather see Anthrax than Slayer, but it would be nice for a band like Sodom to get more exposure. Thought Slayer might be a little intimidated by them. I'll give this album an 8, and check out the full length to come in August.