Germany’s Kreator really needs no introduction and despite a few mishap albums in the 90’s, for me, remain the best German Thrash Metal act to this day.  I will venture to say I remember when Endless Pain was released in 1985 and 1986 brought about my favorite album by them, Pleasure to Kill.  ’92-99, is their lull period, but in 2001 Kreator returned to their aggressive thrash metal roots with the outstanding Violent Revolution.  They have been kicking the crap out of the thrash metal scene since, with Enemy of God, Hordes of Chaos and Phantom Antichrist. 

Go ahead and add Gods of Violence to the list with more exceptional artwork and this album title kind of is a conglomeration of sorts with having a similar name to their other albums and their most recent sounding albums.  Don’t forget to hit up Nuclear Blast for the plethora of package deals for this bad boy.  From vinyl to cd/blu-ray, featuring a live concert, Nuclear Blast went all out for this release.

The title track has an epic opening that Kreator experimented on with their last album, Phantom Antichrist and then rips into a killer guitar riff that is out of the Extreme Aggression handbook and then kicks into a thrashing moment with the catchy chorus, coming in at the minute and half mark.  Mille’s vocals still retain the trademark snarl and are clearer than ever.  Nice groove in the middle with some solos and melodic parts.  Long standing drummer, Ventor, pounds the crap out of the drums and really nice, swift, double bass on the track.  Very catchy and memorable track.  “World War Now” is an exceptional track with killer guitar and drumming.  Once of the best Kreator songs, in recent memory.  I really love the double bass over the fast, thrashing moments.  Brutal, mixed in with furious guitar riffing and Mille screaming like a madman. 

“Totalitarian Terror” has some killer riffing, even a little Slayer nod to top off the track.  More melodic guitar moments, before the thrashing comes around again to beat the piss out of you.  Goddammit, after all these years, Kreator continues to age like a fine wine.  Just listen to the catchy riffs and vocal arrangements on this track and the entire album.  Truly outstanding musicians, continuing to improve upon their craft.  Longtime fans should be proud of this amazing band.  The album closes with “Death Becomes My Light”, at over 7 minutes is the longest track with Mille doing some clean opening vocals, WTF???  Anyway the tune goes into a classic Maiden traditional guitar riff, screaming of NWOBHM, before the double bass comes in, but still retaining the classic metal mid- paced bounce.  This is classic metal, non- thrashing and a very bold move by Kreator.  However, the melody is increased even more on all of Gods of Violence and I usually like my albums to end just as intense as they open.  So while this is not a thrashing song, I do respect Kreator for closing the album with a song, screaming of classic Maiden and overall the song is great.

Gods of Violence is one of the strongest sounding Kreator albums and this crushes.  This is how you want thrash metal to sound, with all the instruments mixed in perfectly. Yes, there is more melody, with more classic metal moments sprinkled throughout Gods of Violence.  Make no mistake, the thrashing is all over the place on the album and talk about coming out the starting gates in 2017 with such an album.  This will make my best of list at the end of this year.  Do not even get me started on “Army of Storms”.  Those stop/start moments I just want to start picking up trees and launch them across the country like it’s nobody’s business. 

Kreator have once again returned with a phenomenal album.  When they tour ensure you see them.  I’ve seen them live since Extreme Aggression, probably a total of 6-7 times.  One of the best live acts and finest thrash bands to ever have been Kreated!! 

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