Battlecreek are a thrash metal band from Germany formed in 2004 releasing to date three albums – ‘Wake The Plague’ (2011), ‘Hate Injection’ (2014), and ‘Maze Of The Mind’ (2024).
Maintaining Germany’s immense reputation for brutal thrash metal, Battlecreek returned for a third time to hammer listeners with forty-six savage minutes of aggressive and in-your-face thrash – the Bavarian four-piece fierce and fiery, as the band launched ‘Maze Of The Mind’ towards the metal masses with the mellow crescendo building effects loaded ‘Implosion Of The Sun’ – hitting like a wrecking ball after just thirty or so seconds! And come the one-minute mark the band are in full stride, ‘Implosion Of The Sun’ roaring loud and very proud – Battlecreek is back! And delivering brutality like it’s the most natural thing in the world – which it kinda is for a band as brutal as Battlecreek! It’s been almost ten years since the band’s last album – have they mellowed? Have they fuck!
The band are just as aggressive as I remember them, ‘King Of Rats’ picking up the pace, storming forth with more savagery than ‘Implosion Of The Sun’, Battlecreek more than living up to the legacy set by the Teutonic Four – Kreator, Sodom, Destruction and Tankard (for anyone who (still) doesn’t know who the Teutonic Four are) – forty years ago! Yes readers, forty years ago Germany planted a massive boot-print on the world map of metal with a style of thrash to rival that of American thrash – the American style of thrash created by the Big 4 of Anthrax, Megadeth, Metallica and Slayer. These eight bands very much set the blueprint for thrash metal, a blueprint that may be four decades old but very much lives on today. And in the hands of bands such as Battlecreek, it’s gonna live on for another four decades and beyond! And with a blistering turn of speed, ‘Maze Of The Mind’ roars on with the title song ‘Maze Of The Mind’, the band sending the world mosh pits into fucking overdrive! Heads are gonna be rocking back and forth at an incredible rate of knots here, ‘Maze Of The Mind’ (the song) is a headbanger right out the top drawer! As is ‘Knockout In The First Round’, a feisty thrash metaller with enough energy and oomph to power a city for many a year to come – Battlecreek cruising the autobahn at full throttle!
Chiming in at just a minute in length, ‘The Cords Of Death’ is an eerie, effects-laden intro to the crushing ‘Thou Shalt Not Kill’ – a fast and ferocious thrasher that’s gonna test just how far neck muscles can stretch! Best get the phone number ready for the local accident & emergency services, just in case, ’cause you never know – Battlecreek moving swiftly on with the brasher, and more bolder ‘Slaves To The Virtual God’. Very much in your face with a menacing attitude, ‘Slaves To The Virtual God’ is a ravenous rampage that devours the airways with raw aggression, the band roaming around every inch of the thrash metal genre to deliver a variety-loaded album! An album that marches on with ‘Granville’s Hammer’, featuring additional vocals from Gama Bomb frontman Philly Byrne – the pace of the album reaching new, and higher speeds than ever! Scorching the earth with devastating success, ‘Granville’s Hammer’ is fast-paced with a sharp traditional heavy metal edge, the band planting their collective feet firmly on the monitor to jump the border wall into territory owned by the likes of Rage, Venom, and newcomers POWERHOUSE.
The sub one minute ‘…To The Gallows’ is a mellow guitar-led stroll that introduces the heavy foot stomping ‘Pleasures Of The Hangman’, the band shuddering the ground with an immense amount of force – force that threatens to blow a massive hole right through the centre of the planet! Battlecreek is at its most menacing here, sending wave after wave of fear directly at listeners everywhere – there’s simply no hiding place from this kinda of menace, the band are gonna get ya, no matter how far you run! Even running as far as the thrash metal border ain’t gonna help you, for the band is right there too, just like security patrolling a secure no admittance area – ‘Maze Of The Mind’ (the album) coming to an end with a fierce final flourish, ‘Border Patrol’ bludgeoning every listener round the head with vicious intent! The head bang ability since song one minute one has been incredible, Battlecreek delivering one helluva mosh pit work-out – and I know I said ‘Border Patrol’ was the final song, but the instrumental ‘Goliath’s Revenge’ actually brings the album to a close, the band offering one more opportunity for the headbangers of the world to go fucking mental!
Overall, a fast-paced and fierce assault of aggressive thrash metal, ‘Maze Of The Mind’ is savage and loaded to the hilt with head bang ability.
TRACKLIST
Implosion Of The Sun
King Of Rats
Maze Of The Mind
Knockout In The First Round
The Cords Of Death
Thou Shalt Not Kill
Slaves To The Virtual God
Granville’s Hammer (feat. Philly Byrne/Gamma Bomb)
…To The Gallows
Pleasures Of The Hangman
Border Patrol
Goliath‘S Revenge (Instrumental)
Battlecreek: Facebook
Release Year: 2024
Label: self-released
Category: Album
Country: Germany
Reviewed by Iron Mathew for Frenzy Fire and Metal-Roos.
