In today’s day and age of death metal/hardcore hybrids, tech death wankery, and the never-ending disso death abyss in which bands are constantly trying to out-Gorguts each other, sometimes you need someone to come along, put their hand on your shoulder, and say bluntly, “Please just stop.” What better band to do this than Master? Formed way back in ’83, these guys have been playing death metal longer than most of us (myself included) have been alive. Hell, they were playing death metal before it was death metal! Needless to say, their significance to this music can’t be overstated enough.
With this in mind, it’s nothing short of incredible that over 40 years on, these veterans are still unleashing total havoc and utter death, this time with their 15th studio album (including the unreleased ’85 album that didn’t see the light of day until 2003), Saints Dispelled. While only founding bassist/vocalist Paul Speckmann remains from those early years, his vision for the band and the brutal metal they forge is sharp as ever. Aided by longtime guitarist Alex “93” Nejezchleba and new drummer Peter Bajci, Master unleashes an album that is short and anything but sweet.
Right off the bat, Master comes storming in with the devastating “Destruction in June” (and it’s only January!). With its air guitar friendly ’80s death/thrash riffs, hellish soloing, and skull shattering drum work, “Destruction in June” lays down the groundwork for an album that thrives on old school aggression and raw power. The fury continues with the Hellhammerian madness of “Walk in the Footsteps of Death” and nefariously catchy title track, the latter boasting riffage akin to Hell Awaits era Slayer, which isn’t too surprising considering both bands came up in the same era and underground scene. The difference, of course, is one had the fortune of crossing paths with Rick “I know nothing about music” Rubin, but I digress.
Considering the straightforward, no frills approach of Saints Dispelled, one would expect to grow bored come its second half, the same tropes being force fed over and over, right? Wrong. Things only get more cathartic with the likes of “Find Your Life” and “Marred and Diseased”: Pissed off displays of death metalpunk with nods to Discharge and the loudest band that ever was, Motörhead. “The Wiseman” is a slight musical detour with its ominous intro and questionable breakdown section, before “The Wizard of Evil” rounds the affair out with a final blow to the cranium.
There’s no doubt about it: Master remain the masters of their craft. Speckmann has only grown more misanthropic. It shows in the riffs, arrangements, and lyrics that make up Saints Dispelled, not to mention, the production which sounds straight out of the mid ’80s. If you’re looking for the “musings” of a “matured artist” toning things down in his “sunset years”, don’t. With 8 cuts of deadly steel, Master are guaranteed to send the latest band of camo-short clad, Pit Viper wearing, hardcore kids turned death metal trend-hoppers straight to the morgue, and that’s “The Truth”!
7 out of 10
Label: Hammerheart Records
Genre: Death/Thrash Metal
For fans of: Massacre, Possessed, Death Strike