Acid Mass has everything you’d want in an ’80s thrash throwback band: a rad name, killer album art, and wicked song titles like “Infernal Militia” and “Sacrament of Filth”. Only Acid Mass isn’t a band per se. No, Acid Mass is the unholy bastard spawn of Ben Ricketts. Now this is usually the part of the review where I’d list the slew of bands Ricketts has been in prior. How you should already be acquainted with him and if you’re not, you’re a poser. Well folks, in the case of Ricketts and his alter ego Acid Mass, even I’m stumped. By all accounts, Ricketts is an everyday thrasher like you and I with a penchant for fast, evil metal.
Considering Acid Mass is a “one man band”, it’s impressive how well put together their debut full length, Agonizer, is. Granted, the lion’s share of this album follows the same framework from beginning to end, similar to Slayer’s iconic Reign in Blood (1986). Yet also like RiB, this is an album that doesn’t overstay its welcome, sandwiching 10 songs in just a little over 23 minutes. In other words, if you’re expecting some ambitious, lengthy Master of Puppets-esque suite or a senseless exercise in tech-thrash wankery, think again.
The first thing that caught my attention about this release is its extremity. Although the handy, dandy Metal Archives lists Acid Mass as merely “thrash metal”, they’re far too sinister to be labeled that singularly. Yes, Agonizer thrashes hard from beginning to end, and there’s no shortage of moshy passages throughout. However, Ricketts’ gruff vocals and the infernal manner of the riffs sound far too close to early death metallers like Possessed, Kreator, Dark Angel, and the aforementioned Slayer (I’m dying on the “Hell Awaits is the first death metal album.” hill.) For these reasons, we’re branding this a death/thrash album.
Agonizer‘s first half storms through the gates like a battering ram. It only takes one listen to cuts like “Infernal Militia”, “Blood in the Air”, and “Left to Burn” to realize that brutality reigns supreme in the post-apocalyptic hell that is Acid Mass’ world. Ricketts proves himself a worthwhile musician on all ends, especially behind the drums where he does his best Lombardo impersonation throughout. While the second half sees the songs becoming a tad predictable, surprises like the aptly titled metalpunk rager “Sacrament of Filth” and curveball instrumental “Shadow Moses” add a sense of depth without deviating from the album’s initial purpose.
Assuming Acid Mass isn’t some one and done vehicle like so many other one man bands dominating the annals of Bandcamp and the Metal Archives, there is great potential for further development. I look forward to hearing how they can further blur the line between death and thrash, satiating our collective hunger for that wild era between ’85 and ’89 when the rules were nonexistent and extremity continued to be pushed to its utmost limits. Agonizer gets the point effortlessly, urging the listeners to bang their heads into oblivion. And bang we shall!
6 out of 10
Label: Morbid and Miserable Records
Genre: Death/Thrash Metal
For fans of: Slayer, Dark Angel, Demolition Hammer