Alitor - Eternal Depression



This whole metal world is kind of crazy sometimes.  It seems like maybe bands and publicists get a little carried away with how bands are labeled.  Music to me is either something I like or something I don't, and I don't need labels to help me figure that out.  There are so many bands out there though, that maybe they feel the need to keep inventing labels and sub-genres to let people know what they sound like.  For me, the differentiating factor is whether or not your band is good. 

All of that leads me to the subject at hand, Alitor.  They call themselves a progressive thrash band, I guess because they aren't just a straight thrash band.  But metal has grown and evolved so much that few bands are “just” any particular genre.  And that's ok.  When you are as good as these guys, you can probably call yourself whatever you want.

This is definitely a thrash band.  They thrash away through most of this material like any band you can think of.  Seriously, when these guys are in thrash mode, I'll put them up against anyone.  The band that mostly comes to mind in listening to this album is Exodus, to give you a point of reference.  I think the “progressive” bit comes from the fact that they don't simply play two and a half minute ragers.  Alitor write some seriously good songs that thrash along like maniacs, then slow down a bit for some very tasty guitar work, and then up the tempo again.  It might sound a little formulaic when I describe it, but it sounds anything but when you give the album a spin.  Each song has its own identity and stands out as track that you can remember.  Trust me, in the world of metal these days that is an accomplishment. 

These guys come from Serbia, but you can't really detect that from the singing.  The vocals are mostly growled but you can make out the lyrics if you just give a listen.  I don't know what kind of a metal scene exists in Serbia but these guys really kick ass, and if they are a good representation then metal is alive and well there.  The drummer in this band is a beast and pulls off just about anything asked of him.  The guitarists are both very good and there is some very cool interplay between them, as well as some nice twin guitar work.  And whichever one plays the solos really rips.  The bassist is also the singer and he holds everything down as a bassist should.

“The Artist of Deception” is not only a nice little play on words but is a very excellent song.  The band is in full thrash mode pretty much all the way through this one so you can really hear how good they are at it.  I also like “Contorted Existence” which shows off how versatile this band is when it comes to song structure.  And the title track is a real rager as well that slows down for some good guitar work. 

Metal is alive and well all throughout the world as Alitor demonstrate.  Check this one out, especially if you are a true thrasher.

- ODIN



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