This Is Hell

Long Island, NY's This Is Hell have long been threatening to move away from their punk roots ― last year's towering Weight of the World was the record that signalled their intentions to even up the score between hard punk and thrash. Black Mass follows up those threats with force; the band grind along the metallic edge with total command in "The Reckoning" and "Mi Nombre," where Travis Reilly's inner-Hetfield manifests itself as a throaty advance and Rick Jimenez's hot licks snatch the listener like a hand out of a grave. On the production front, the sharpened attack of the guitars is met with a punchy drum mix that, when combined with the band's intensity, creates a record ready to take on all comers. Although it could've easily become an empty tribute to early '80s thrash, Black Mass delivers a large dose but remains in a modern metallic hardcore package. The result is no joke, but for the floor, the punch lines are everywhere.