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Fastkill > Infernal Thrashing Holocaust > Reviews
Fastkill - Infernal Thrashing Holocaust

FLIED LICE - 63%

caspian, September 1st, 2010

First, let's get this out of the way: this really isn't that fast. It is fast in relation to And Justice For All, or, say, Black Sabbath's debut, but it's not as speedy as Reign in Blood, and nowhere near as speedy as, I dunno, Darkness Descends; nor does it feel as unhinged as a bunch of the early german thrash bands. Put it this way: I, a drone fan, Metallica fanboy and extremely casual thrash follower don't find it that fast or hard to comprehend. So please dudes, saying this is extremely fast is just embarrasing for everyone.

So with that point done, allow me to bring out a generalisation; it's usual japanese metal- a competent take on a genre, with excellent production values- bass is audible, a real nice guitar tone, very tight drumming. This is all fine and good but considering that this band's sole/main gimmick is that it is thrash as shit, I reckon this would be a fair bit better if it was recorded by South Americans. There's this Brazilian band called Wardeath who do a similar 'we are really fast!!' type thang, but whereas this record here is all crisply recorded, very on time, probably very pro tool'd up, Wardeath just go at it as crazily as possible, on time-ness and tuning be damned. It's something these guys could consider, for sure.

Comparisons with this random ass Brazilian band I mentioned can be extended beyond tempo, as well. Fastkill write some pretty decent riffs, for sure, but for the most part they aren't terribly amazing song writers, and Agony and Eternal Pain aside there's little in the way of extremely memorable stuff- it's fast, it's sorta vicious, but it's not amazing, y'know? It makes you bang your head, but that's because of the basic techniques that are being used, moreso than the stuff that is actually being written. Welp, Wardeath suffer a similar problem- they ain't exactly the best songwriters around- but they go at it with such conviction, such menace, that it works extremely well. Fastkill, not so much.

Sure, props are due to the nice mix of Slayer, Dark Angel and early Kreator here, it's not party thrash and that's cool and something I applaud. But it's not really that great, that's all I'm saying. It's sort of similar to the Dragonforce approach to power metal- speed isn't everything*! Go and check out Wardeath instead.


* This is a bit unfair to Dragonforce, who are a good deal faster than Fastkill.

what am i missing here - 55%

Noktorn, January 15th, 2010

Point one: The production is not nearly as bad as everyone says it is. Everything is audible and the mixing is adequate. There are hundreds of albums, and probably hundreds of thrash albums, with much worse production than this one. Complaints about it are silly.

Point two: This is nowhere near as fast as people are proclaiming. Dark Angel were going faster than this back in '86, and numerous other bands such as Sodom and Kreator regularly FEEL faster than this music. I don't typically like thrash as a rule, but I do like it when it feels completely unhinged and unrestrained. Fastkill plays thrash by the rules; it's fast but not too fast, and overall it just feels like they could be doing a great deal more with what they have than they do.

'Infernal Thrashing Holocaust' has ensnared a great number of people in the metal scene for reasons I don't fully understand; perhaps I got something different than they did on the CD, but when I play it all I here is pretty average, plain thrash metal that doesn't capture my interest for even the sub-half hour running time it lasts. Riffs, vocals, and drums are all exceedingly average in both composition and delivery, and not even attempted atmospheric touches like the opening intro go beyond 'well, that's nice I guess'.

I don't know if I'm missing something huge here or if it's really just as plain as it seems, which would be very disappointing as other opinions on the album led me to believe this would be up there with Besieged or Invasion as a new thrash band I would really enjoy. Unfortunately, there's just not much here. I suppose if you like mildly brutal thrash this would be up your alley, as it is heavier than, say, Anthrax, but to anyone else who's more involved in extreme metal this is entirely skippable.

Holyshitthisissofuckingfast!!! - 84%

Wra1th1s, May 23rd, 2008

Oh those Japs! Those crazy Japs! I was under the impression that only X-Japan was the only worthwhile band (along with Loudness.) But damn! This is some bona fide motherrapin' (not fuckin',) T-H-R-A-S-H! From '04 no less!

*sigh* I better relax. Productionwise, this album is quite muddy. The drums are a little overpowering and the vox are often buried. The bass is nonexistant...but I wasn't expecting any. The guitars own, however, and that's always a plus. The vox are mixed really 'distant.' It's like they made him shriek in a bar, however the vox still sounds kick ass.

There is something strange with Asian men, they can fucking scream like a male cat being neutered with red-hot tools, first it was Osegueda now this guy. Damn, I mean the shrieks are like rape victim screams and not a female one at that! The guitars tone is quite muddy but the riffing is tight and the solos, though very brief, are very enjoyable. The drumming is great, definitely above average thrash drumming. The drummer must be one of those ASIMO the Japanese has been making, there is no way a person can play this fast for so long (this of course do not apply to people like Hoglan, Reil and Lombardo.)! I've told you before that the bass is nonexistant and that's somewhat true. Every now and then you can hear the bass but it just follows the guitar so yeah, practically nonexistant.

Now the songs are fuckin' short, although what it lacks in length it makes up with sonofabitchthisisfasterthanlight speed. Seriously, these guys cannot slow down. It's like they have a thrash version of ADHD. So what does this say in terms of quality? Awesomeness, my friends. Awesomeness. Although I thought that the first track had a long-ass intro that detracts from the awesomeness. Once that track is over, Fastkill apologized for that bullshit and NEVER let's the tempo drop below 180. Perhaps the worst aspect of that is the fact that the songs seem to run together. But hey, if it works for Slayer it works for Fastkill. Some highlights are "Kill for Pleasure" and "Sense of Ignorance," actually they're all good but these ones are above the rest.

Get it? Why yes, yes indeed! Possibly one of the better things Japan has ever done (yep, more than anime, manga, most of their games and definitely visual kei.) Keep a look out for these guys, they're definitely a keeper!

Who knew the Japanese could pull of thrash?! - 91%

The_Boss, April 13th, 2008

As the title says, I was completely blown away with this debut of the Japanese thrash band Fastkill. The band name and the album name give off a general idea as to how this will sound; hyper speed, nonstop blasting thrash metal. To say this is fast is an understatement; think of Darkness Descends or Eternal Nightmare with intense riffing at the highest rate. Imagine Herman Li going thrash (I’m sure he’s not Japanese but whatever), these guys have taken the 80’s theme of raw thrash and utter chaos and brought it up to new ages as this was released in 2004.

Being a short debut, it is spent each passing second at the fastest rate possible with no stopping. 100% relentless thrash metal with mediocre production, but not terrible, it does its job as creating an old school sound but still having the guitars up in the front with its ridiculously fast riffing and solos mixed perfectly with the nonstop drumming. Another highlight I find to be interesting is the bass is so perfect in this album, solos everywhere, I haven’t heard a release where the bass was so prominent in such a long time. Bass rhythms here are awesome with complete madness everywhere, check out Feel The Hatred! The best part of Fastkill is probably the vocalist; this guy is a madman. He’s everywhere screaming, shrieking, and roaring at such a fast pace and high pitch is sounds like his head is going to literally burst with so much energy and power. This guy stands up there with Schmier of Destruction or John Kevill of Warbringer as being one of the most energetic and forceful singers in thrash metal, I’m just waiting for this guy’s vocal chords to just rip into shreds in the middle of singing.

The songs on here are very short but highly memorable, full of gang shouted choruses and awesome vocal performance as well as some of the fastest riffs and guitar solos. Bass solos rampant as well make for this to be definitely in the most fun thrash albums of the '00s, and probably the best thrash album from Japan. This is essential for fans of thrash in general as well as fans of raw, fast as fuck, thrash that is just plain chaotic and insane. Fastkill are to be recognized, don’t dismiss them because they’re Japanese, I was wary at first as well thinking they couldn’t pull it off but I was wrong. This is highly aggressive thrash metal that doesn’t relent, enjoy yourself before it ends!

Intense Japanese thrash - 83%

BloodIronBeer, October 22nd, 2007

Fastkill. Well that certainly says it all, doesn't it?

The Japanese are all insane. And I love it. Unlike most of the senile cruise-speed fodder that is being labeled as thrash anymore, this is 900-mph, kick you in the throat and steal your beer thrash. Often when I sit down and just want to listen to something that thrashes hard, I find myself going for this quite a bit.

The production is so gritty. The vocalist screams like an absolutely lunatic and it sounds like his voice is going go at any moment. Death-tinged thrash riffs come quick, strike with force, and exit. 27 minutes, and not a one is spent going at any remotely slow pace. The back up gang vocals reveal an amusing Japanese accent. No complaint there, it helps it stand apart from all the American and German thrash most are accustomed to.

There isn't a huge variety here, the music relies on being aggressive and solid intense riffs. The lyrics are typical and from what I can tell, not exactly grammatically impeccable. Big surprise, huh?

Like the album, I'm going to keep this review short. If you're not looking for anything groundbreaking, and just want an incredibly intense thrash album to pummel you into the ground, check this album out.

They've come from Japan to snap necks - 95%

drummerboy, October 8th, 2005

Japan's Fastkill, who have been putting out pure thrash demos since 1996, finally released their first album in late 2004.

Production is very nice, that 80's sound with a fresh coat of paint. Drums sounds crisp, guitars are sharp and pummelling, the lead vocals and gang chants sound great. The gang chants sound particularily venomous. The bass fills out the guitar sound very, very nicely, but isn't drowned out at all. Impressive.

Musicianship is excellent, the arrangements are very well thought out and flow very naturally. Excellent, creative drumming, (and as a drummer myself) I can appreciate the creativeness of the fills as they aren't generic sounding, and often don't start/stop where you think they would. Vocals are very unique, and remind me of Mille from Kreator. Some nice guitar solos thrown in too. Oh and the riffs fucking crush, catchy catchy catchy! Very heavy German influences here.

The album opens with "Torture Inception," which starts as a creepy mood-setting spoken word (in Latin?) intro that turns into a chugging, churning instrumental thrasher that builds and builds. Great way to start the album!My favourite song is "Sense of Ignorance." Check out the perfectly executed ride out...Now THAT is how you end a thrash song folks. Every song has something that hooks you and forces you to smash your head against the floor/table/cat.

It's a modern thrash metal album with riffs untainted by groove/half thrash influence, and the production is great, it doesn't sound anything like The Haunted or At The Gates etc. This MAY be my favourite thrash album of all time..just fucking brain meltingly awesome.

addendum: I can attest to these guys crushing live, (they play some godly covers of "Toxic Trace" and "Agents of Steel") so if they start to play shows abroad or you're in Japan, a) buy neck brace b) go see them!

This kills, and FAST! - 90%

Cup_Of_Tea, March 8th, 2005

Japanese thrash was always insane, that's finely noticeable in you do listen to their bands. Well this album is even more insane then the most, they simply give 120% of themselves and do it very good.
The only bad part of this album would be the intro to the first song... and that's it (though the song itself is an intro to the rest).
After that it's simply slays your brain cells and you have no choice but to obey the extreme banging urge.
The music is something like a really fast Destruction with crazier vocals than Schmier himself, and that's crazy allright.
What to we have here? The riffs were mentioned before, they're really fast, and not at all repetetive, the solos executed as good as the music itself. The drumming is not very imaginative, but it's a positive thing, it's only there to contribute to the insane rhtym, nothing more.

Kill For Pleasure's the best song here, and there is no doubt about that, the others come close. Oh... and Sense of Ignorance in the first minute sound EXACTLY like Destruction... even the scream is the same... crazy. Oh... the choruses are really funny, but not badly executed, just a bit too loud in the mix, that's all.

This is a non-stop banging experience from some great Japanise thrashers and it's worth getting. You do like brutal thrash, don't you?