Forty-three years, twenty albums and not one ounce of compromise, Overkill are a thrash metal institution with a proud legacy and a remarkably consistent back catalogue. Tirelessly led by the seemingly indestructible pair of D.D. Verni and Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth, the band may have drifted in and out of fashion, but the last decade or so (starting with the release of 2010’s excellent Ironbound) has seen the band continually upping the ante, with 2019’s The Wings Of War providing incoming drummer Jason Bittner with a powerful debut. It’s been four years since that album, the pandemic causing absolute turmoil, but the wait has been worth it. With Colin Richardson at the helm, the band are now a ferociously tight unit, while the album provides a potent reminder of just how punishing Overkill can be.
From the moment the deft, arpeggiated riff of Scorched kicks off the album, there’s a sense that Overkill are aspiring to the epic on the album and, while the track soon explodes into a complex barrage of hard hitting thrash pyrotechnics, it’s tempered by a sense of melody that, for all the fire and fury, maintains its roots in classic rock. It’s a cracking start and it lays the foundations for one hell of a neck-snapper of an album. Next up, the layered guitars of Goin’ Home have an early Metallica vibe, the band sweeping majestically from mid-tempo groove to fiery thrash in just four short minutes. Fans will undoubtedly already have heard the bruising first single from the album, The Surgeon, which eschews subtlety in favour of a full-tilt thrash attack, complete with motormouthed delivery from Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth, who wastes no time in reminding us of the basis for his nickname here. The pace finally slows for the doomy introduction to Twist Of The Wick, and while it’s a forty-second respite that merely serves to obscure the frantic horror hiding in its wake, it provides just enough of a break to maintain the album’s overall impact. Closing out the first side, the album’s second single, Wicked Place, has one hell of a groove to it, and it’s easy to see why the band considered it for independent release. A strangely catchy beast, it brings the first act to one hell of a close.
Following on from Wicked Places’ orchestral coda, Overkill take a leftfield trip on Won’t Be Comin’ Back, which has a pinch of Queensryche prog metal magic to it, the band demonstrating their musical ability, without sacrificing the harder edge for which they’re known. That Queensryche vibe remains on the surprisingly atmospheric introduction to Fever, which sees some of Bobby’s best singing juxtaposed against an explosive second act that is all the more devastating for the complex dynamics the band deploy. Having experimented a touch, the band get back to simply scorching the earth with the blazing Harder They Fall, while Know Her Name is equally powerful, built around a taut thrash riff that belies the band age. All too quickly the album arrives at its gruelling finale, Bag O’ Bones,a surprisingly catchy closer that lodges itself in the listener’s brain no matter how hard you try to shake it out.
With brutally precise performances, a strong chemistry between band members and some surprisingly catchy melodies amid the devastation, Scorched shows that Overkill have lost none of their fire. With Colin Richardson providing clarity and depth and Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth on superlative form, Scorched may have been a long time coming, but it’s been worth the wait. Veterans Overkill may be, but their absolute dedication to the world of metal remains unshakeable and Scorched is a clear statement of intent from a band still dedicating to making the very earth quake at their approach. 9/10
