Death Angel - Humanicide (2019)

Nuclear Blast, May 30, 2019

Tracklist

1. Humanicide

2. Divine Defector

3. Aggressor

4. I Came For Blood

5. Immortal Behated

6. Alive and Screaming
7. The Pack

8. Ghost of Me

9. Revelation Song

10. Of Rats and Men

11. The Day I Walked Away

Death Angel can be considered as one of the all-time best Bay Area thrash metal bands. While considered one of the "Big Eight" of thrash metal, they have been more of an underground act compared to many of their peers, and also broke up for ten years before reuniting in 2001. Death Angel has experienced some lineup changes, with guitarist/vocalist Rob Cavestany and vocalist Mark Osegueda being the only consistent members on every album, but their sound has changed little from their initial material. In May 2019, we get the band's ninth studio album, and their sixth since that reunion. The album artwork features a different incarnation of the rampaging wolves that appeared on the cover for Death Angel's 2013 release The Dream Calls for Blood. This time, the wolves are running through what looks like an abandoned town in a potential scene from a post-apocalyptic film. The title refers to the lack of compassion and self-destructive behavior we display towards others, ourselves, and our environment.

Delving further into the inspiration for the album, guitarist Rob Cavestany has said, "Our band has experienced this [hostility] since we first started in the '80s, being that for one thing, we were all young and these Filipino cousins that didn't fit the normal look of the heavy metal band. We experienced harsh people all over the place for no apparent reason but because they weren't able to accept other people, or something other than what they think is how it's supposed to be, and that seems to be the problem persisting today. People are just thinking that whatever the way they do things or the way their particular scene is, that's how it's supposed to be everywhere else. They're not accepting of others, and it's getting really blown up in a bad way these days." Contrasting with this outlook is the '80s thrash throwback style track "The Pack", which celebrates the unity and cooperation of a wolf pack. Besides the clear reference to the album cover, it's a possible tie-in to the the overall concept, showing how the union of the wolf wins out, and urging listeners to be more accepting and less selfish before we destroy ourselves. 

Musically, Humanicide doesn't deviate too far from the confines of thrash metal, but it's evident that band wasn't looking to make a by-the-numbers album either. While "Divine Defector", "I Came For Blood", "The Pack", "Alive and Screaming" and "Aggressor" are all fairly fast-paced thrash metal, most of these tracks have an identity of their own. Other songs vary the pacing and keep the album from getting one-sided and repetitive. "Revelation Song" is a mid-tempo track in the style of classic heavy metal bands with memorable guitar leads. "Immortal Behated" is the strongest example of variation on the album. The song begins with a melodic guitar section that reappears throughout, building to some heavier moments but always in a controlled state. On the outro this guitar motif fades into a 95-second piano-dominated section. This song is a great example of how to properly use quiet melodic sections in thrash metal that enhance the song rather sounding like it was tacked on. "The Day I Walked Away", a bonus track on some versions of the album, uses a spoken word delivery from Mark Osegueda in the verses and has a similarly patient, ominous atmosphere. It's another well-done foreboding track, although not as strong as "Immortal Behated".

In summary, Death's Angel's latest will be enjoyed most by the band's fans and the thrash metal fanbase, rather than those outside the genre. The sound is a clear homage to classic metal music, but the band maintains their own sound and identity. Overall, it's a very solid effort and one of Death Angel's stronger albums in recent years. I give this album a rating of 8/10.