Attackhead

Southern California thrash fiends Attackhead remember when metal albums sounded like they were recorded in tin cans and written around as much E-chord chugging as humanly possible. The result of that little excursion down memory lane is Voices in the Dark, an album that frustrates as much as it entices. Harkening back to a time when names like Violence and Forbidden were appreciated instead of thrown around nostalgically, the album sounds as if it could have been a pivotal mid-'80s effort. One can discern the influence of underground heroes the Accused and Rigor Mortis, as well as the more obvious retro Slayer and Sepultura bits. But those aspects are also its biggest detriment: hearing rough-sounding classic albums is great, but these 11 tunes are little more than a reverb bath in a mineshaft. Moreover, while the band's vocalist has the perfect timbre for such aggressive music, he relies too heavily on following the metre (think: Show No Mercy) instead of carving his own path, rendering many songs rather flat. Although Voices in the Dark houses great riffs and a sinister atmosphere, it's hampered by cut corners, making one hope that in future, Attackhead learn to properly represent, and manifest, their influences instead of aping them entirely.