Overkill

Under The Influence

Solid, if not spectacular

Review Score:

(8/10)
This is a very sold thrash album right here, though it really doesn't suggest the sort of excellence they'd achieve with their next two albums. Still, it's worth a look for any thrash fan.

'Under the Influence's biggest problem is that they haven't fully developed their thrash style just yet. Blitz has still got his distinctive voice, but he can't control it as well as he could by just the very next album. Furthermore, their riffing is a bit too middle of the road, not enough crushing, doom riffs like they'd pull out on later work, or faster, fiercer work either. The riffs are effective enough, but not always all that distinctive or exciting. Still, this is good stuff, although I'd dare say that there isn't a single flat out great song on the album.

'Shred' is a very good opener. It's a little slow in the verses and chorus, but they're both very melodic and memorable, and serve as a great contrast for the blistering middle break. The solo is totally sweet too, as is pretty much all the leadwork on the album. 'Hello from the Gutter' is pretty bouncy and happy sounding for a thrash song, but it's quite catchy and still pretty heavy despite the lighter tone. 'Drunken Wisdom' is a slower more epic piece. Not as crushing as 'Horroscope' or 'Skullkrusher' but it's still pretty powerful, and it comes to a great climax with the chanting 'Drunken! Wisdom! Drunken! Wisdom!'. 'End of the Line' is perhaps the standout track. The main portions of the song are solid, if not truly spectacular, but the middle break is pretty devastating. The soloing is flatly awesome, and the melodic and memorable but still very thrashy riffing underneath matchs is perfectly. 'Under the Influence' is definitely the heaviest thing here, and pretty fast and energetic too, but still with a very cool chorus. Unfortunately, 'Never Say Never' is just a bit too generic, and 'Mad Gone World' has a rather irritating chorus, along with just not being all that interesting otherwise. The tracks I didn't mention are better than those two, but still not remarkable. Not anything you'd need to skip over either, however. So, it's a fairly consistent albums overall.

Good thrash album here. Not great, and not a good choice for those who don't have any Overkill, but still a solid album.

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