Warbringer - Weapons of Tomorrow (2020)

Under the grand Thrash metal umbrella, there is a very small percentage of bands that make it into the spotlight and manage to stay there for an extended period of time. Warbringer is one of that fraction of bands that stay on top as one of the most memorable and technically proficient bands to come out of the thrash renaissance. The band continues to further solidify their legacy as Thrash legends with their most recent release which shows the band shows zero signs of letting up. Coming off of their critically acclaimed 2017 album, "Woe to the Vanquished", Warbringer has a lot to live up too, but the band rarely fails to impress.

The overall production on this album is great, with John Kevills vocals upfront and in your face as usual, but not taking away from any of the instrumentation. The band continues to define what thrash means in 2020, appealing to many different crowds, even straddling the lines of Melodic Death Metal or even some very Black Metal instrumentation at times. As mentioned in other reviews, John Kevill's vocal style takes from both Mark Osegueda's high screeches and Tom Araya's aggressive yelling and finds a sweet spot right in the middle. The Lyrics continue to be incredibly well written and are one of the best parts of Warbringer in my opinion. They bring you right into the middle of no man's land and really drive deep messages of the horrors of war deep into the listener's skull.

Instrumentation continues to be taken to the next level on this release. Youthful energy still surrounds this band with there being an equal amount of fast and riff-heavy songs with the 4-6 minute anthems that bring you on a journey through the warzone. The harmonizing guitars throughout the album really bring a whole new element to certain songs that make them stronger as a whole. Chase and Adam know how to bounce the riffs off of each other to make the songs on this record as driving as it is, as well as some great acoustic work such as the intro to "Heart of Darkness" There's nothing that I could say that could hold the drumming od, Carlos Cruz, in as high regard as they deserve. He only lets off the gas at the perfect times and seems to know exactly the right fills that would sound perfect in the spots that he puts them.

Overall this was an amazing gift during quarantine, especially for a 16-year old that has nothing to do except for schoolwork. This is exactly the album that I was hoping for from the band and I am very pleased, to say the least. I apologize if this review was not as sophisticated or in-depth as some of the other ones I've seen on here. This o\is actually my first review on this site so I hope its at least decent haha. Cheers everybody, and thanks for readingю