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artist: Degrave
title: Metalithic
year: 2025
genre: Thrash Metal
type: Album
label: ShredHead Records
language: EN
rel. date: 2025-09-26
source: WEB/MP3
quality: CBR 320kbps / 44.1 kHz / Joint Stereo
runtime: 00:36:37
size: 84.0 MiB / 9 tracks
rip date: 2026-06-17
source url: https://open.qobuz.com/album/brlulqa0c9eyc
tracklist:
01. Usurper of Flame 7:11
02. Sing the Body Electric 3:24
03. Every Fucking Day 3:34
04. Lockdown 3:34
05. Abort the Court 2:36
06. Living in A Smokescreen 4:13
07. Ignis Accendere 1:43
08. Burn up the Sky 6:28
09. Death Is 3:55
release notes:
From the murky depths of Missouri comes the fourth full-length from
native sons Degrave. If you recall, I covered their previous,
jaw-dropping release Volume from 2023. That was a metal as fuck album
and... good news, everyone! Metalithic fucking kills!
I mean that too, in no uncertain terms, this record is solid as a rock,
brutal as fuck, and unapologetically METAL. Like, you can feel the iron
and minerals in your body reacting to the familiar, the glorious tone of
the guitars: that 80s Thrash tone that made albums by Nuclear Assault,
Sacred Reich, and of course, Slayer so memorable and beloved by
generations of Metal fans.
Metalithic stands as a testament to the legacy of Thrash Metal, a
bludgeoning riff after blistering riff, throat grabber. From out of the
gate, they're on fire with "Usurper of Flames", and it brings a smile to
my face. It's unrelenting, and instantly, I got that head-moving feeling.
There's killer gang vocals and enough pinched harmonies to make Cannibal
Corpse blush (and these show up across the album like punctuation marks
of blood). Isaiah "Cliff" Curtis is the star of "Sing the Body Electric";
his bass just walks all over the song like an angry girlfriend who feels
greatly disrespected. It's a bit of a slow burn at first, but then
midpoint it blows up with menace. Then "Every Fucking Day" has this sort
of punked-up flow to it. I get a hint of Obituary's "10,000 Ways to Die"
and that's not unwelcome at all.
This album is definitely a big leap forward from Volume. This is in terms
of production and musicianship from the members. The solos are fucking
mind-blowing. The riffs themselves are like flying guillotines, and
everything pulls together tight as a bullfrog's ass.
"Lockdown" slaps the spit right out of your mouth from the get-go. A
brisk thrasher that could've been on Show no Mercy right after "Final
Command". Degrave doesn't concentrate on Death Metal too much on
Metalithic. This is more of a Thrash workout than the Death Metal moments
from Volume. That's not a complaint, either. This is a ripper of an
album, and I can't help loving the nostalgia brought through the
boundaries of Hell by these guys.
All killer, no filler continues with "Abort the Court", and it's chock
full of gang vocals; it's one of those incredibly fun Thrash songs, sort
of like Anthrax on steroids. "Living In A Smokescreen" blasts by with
hardly a thought as to whether it's safe or not; a rolling death trap
that leaves bodies in its wake.
A highlight for me is the bass instrumental "Ignis Accendere". Isaiah
"Cliff" Curtis runs a clinic on badass bass grooves amongst notes that
crush upon hit. I fucking love this track, hell, I love this whole album.
Degrave doesn't disappoint because they know what's up. The wandering
bass soon becomes part of the Acid Bath-ish "Burn Up the Sky", a swamp
ride into despair, and the final track "Death Is" furthers that murky
feeling with some killer Corrosion of Conformity riffing and a bass line
that won't quit.
With Metalithic, Degrave has created a thrashtastic album that offers you
no respite from the beating from start to finish. This is a thoroughly
enjoyable rip ride that will undoubtedly appeal to people who like
Obituary, Anthrax, D.R.I., and Slayer. Show these guys some love and get
this album!