KILLING PEACE

Metal historians have offered a long list of possible reasons why, in the '80s and early '90s, British thrash metal/speed metal veterans Onslaught were not as well known as Slayer, Metallica, Testament, Megadeth, Anthrax or Exodus -- and those reasons range from uneven, inconsistent albums to inadequate promotion to lineup changes to less than stellar production. Whatever the reason (or reasons), most of those headbanger historians naturally assumed that Onslaught would never be heard from again after disbanding in 1991. But in 2005, Onslaught surprised metalheads by getting back together. That is, they surprised the metalheads who were actually familiar with their old '80s output; a lot of folks had never heard of them (especially on the U.S. side of the Atlantic Ocean). Killing Peace is Onslaught's comeback album and their first recording since 1989's In Search of Sanity, and there is nothing uneven or inconsistent about this CD; the material is excellent, the performances inspired, crisp and undeniably focused. Onslaught's sound on this 2007 release is best described as '80s-style thrash metal/speed metal with a strong Slayer influence, a healthy appreciation of Judas Priest and hints of death metal. None of the forceful, hard-hitting tunes (which are obsessed with Satanism, war and the Occult -- much like Slayer) are even slightly groundbreaking by 2007 standards, but all of them are executed with plenty of conviction. If one needs a sports analogy, Onslaught come across like veteran baseball players who never made it to the major leagues but have done a lot of training and working out in recent years and are determined to make up for lost time. Killing Peace is definitely a respectable comeback, and for those who have never heard Onslaught, it is a fine place to get acquainted with the thrash veterans. ~ Alex Henderson