Where Does Overkill’s New Album, “Scorched”, Rank In Their Sprawling Back Catalogue?
'killin' it!
Emerging from the darkness….
15. From The Underground And Below (1997)
From The Underground And Below may have arrived slap-bang in the middle of Overkill’s mid-period groove metal era but it’s arguably their most consistent release from the period.
Slamming opener “It Lives” ranks as one of Overkill’s finest moments, its rumbling intro driving to the very core of the bands groove-thrash aesthetic and Bobby “Blitz” and Joe Comeau are on fine from vocally; their voices complimenting each other like never before (or after). The highlights are admittedly front-loaded, from “It Lives” to “Save Me” on to the stone-cold classic – and sure-fire ‘hit single’ if released in an era that gave a shit about singles – “Long Time Dyin‘”, to the blast and bounce of “Genocya”, Overkill’s dark grooves and ominous atmosphere remained palpable and highly impressive.
That’s not to say that the remainder of the album is merely filler of course, far from it in fact. “Half Past Dead” (wasn’t that a shitty DTV Steven Seagal flick?) and “Little Bit O’ Murder” maintained the unique style of this overlooked album; polar opposites perhaps but fine examples of Overkill’s ability to flip-flop between atmospheric slow-burners and balls-out thrashers. 7/10
Waging war….
14. Killbox 13 (2003)
In the new millennium, Overkill were still proving sufficiently reliable and Killbox 13 was no exception. The all-out attack of opener “Devil By The Tail” – as brutally and impressively metallic as the Judas Priest classic “Painkiller” – felt like a seismic shock wave to the cerebral cortex. Accomplished and absorbing, this unholy racket dictated the play and Overkill – now considered elder statesmen – were more relevant than ever.
With a thrash renaissance on the horizon, Overkill’s belligerent nature and dogged persistence though the relatively thrash free 90’s was paying off and Killbox 13 was the album to capitalise on renewed interest in their craft.
“Damned” and “The Sound Of Dying” kept the quality coming. Fast and aggressive, it was abundantly clear that Overkill were going for the throat and their unhinged approach echoed throughout the remainder of the album. 7/10
Taking flight….
13. The Wings Of War (2019)
With little diversity, The Wings of War relied on Overkill’s trademarked sound of old-school thrash delivered with primal energy, a punk attitude and a relentless attack which screamed in your face with snarling authenticity!
Opening with the refreshing simplicity of the industrial-tinged “Last Man Standing” (Fear Factory will be wishing they composed that intro), The Wings Of War revealed its finest moments mid-way through. With the haunting intro to “Distortion” heralding a mini-epic which acted as a mid-tempo hammer-blow, “A Mother’s Prayer” then bounced its way through 3 mins of Bobby Blitz’s shrieks before “Welcome to the Garden State” unleashed its punky ode to their home state of Jersey.
Instantly recognisable, Overkill have always known what’s expected of them and they’ve delivered it with levels of energy and commitment which belies a 35+ years existence. Laced with groove, punk and (most importantly) thrash, The Wings Of War was simply another superbly solid metal record from a band with no desire to simply rest on past glories. 7/10
We hear gold!….
12. I Hear Black (1993)
This placing could provoke some major social media vitriol but we maintain that I Hear Black is Overkill’s most underrated album of their entire career. A dark, groove-filled excursion into what was brand new territory for the band, I Hear Black was an album that seemed to take huge risks in dropping the light-speed riffing that made their name. With the pared down, grinding grooves of opener “Dreaming in Columbian” and “Weight of the World”, here was the perfect mid-tempo answer to grunge and alt rock/metal’s arrival. Predictable? Maybe. Necessary? Definitely. And what’s more, Overkill were surprisingly good at this groove metal lark!
I Hear Black was still thrash, just a kind of post-thrash (yuck, can’t believe we dared even say that) and a muddy off-road drive through thrash metal’s fundamentals, left spattered with muck, grime and greasy entrails. In fact, ‘black’ sums it up, as Overkill had never sounded so dark and so nihilistic, their heady trip through Sabbath-ian riffs proving to be totally at odds with the punk-infused racket that had made their name in the 80’s.
I Hear Black proved Overkill were no mere one trick pony and were one of the few thrash metal bands to adapt and survive the 90’s with their integrity mostly intact. Mostly. 7/10
Related content: I Hear Black: Is It Overkill’s Most Underrated Album?
A return to thrashier ways….
11. W.F.O (1994)
Just a year after I Hear Black, Overkill primarily returned to their good ol’ thrashin’ ways with W.F.O. ….and it has remained a divisive album in Overkill’s formidable back catalogue ever since! However, we’re unsure why as the result was an old-school blast of furious thrash that reminded fans exactly why they fell in love with these New Jersey noiseniks in the first place.
Home to killer opener “Where It Hurts” (these boys never fail to deliver an absolute belter of an opening track) and thrash juggernauts “Fast Junkie” and “Up To Zero”, it was the ridiculously infectious “Bastard Nation” that stood out from the pack; faithfully thrashy yet surely designed to be a monster ‘hit’…. if only those record buying bastards had been paying attention!
W.F.O. (or Wide Fucking Open for its full title) proved to be the last hurrah for Overkill’s glory days as the 90’s all but stalled their progress. Nevertheless, W.F.O should be celebrated as a classic 90’s thrash album that bucked prevailing trends and thrashed like a muthafucker! 7/10
Leave a comment