After twenty-five years of spewing forth toxic filth at ear-ravaging volume, Thus Defiled are soon to be consigned forever to the underworld which spawned them. The band have spent their time well, decadently rampaging across stages with the likes of Mayhem, Rotting Christ, Cradle of Filth and Immolation (to name but few) and it seems entirely fitting that they should depart as they arrived, unleashing one last ear-splitting racket that pays tribute to the influences that forged them whilst leaving the listener with their ears ringing from the sheer thunderstruck horror of it all. A Twisted, five-track thank you to the (un) faithful, ‘A return to the shadows’ is a demonic wave goodbye from these masters of the murderous.
Offering one final, original track, Thus Defiled make sure it’s a blinder. The virulent ‘Armagedda in rapture’ features everything you could want from a Thus Defiled track: creepy, demonic intro, swirling, icy guitars and guttural screams that groan under the weight of sulphuric smog that shrouds them, it’s a truly devastating testament to the band’s strengths. What then follows is a short trawl through the band’s collective CD collection kicking off with a raucous cover of Death’s ‘Evil dead’. Complete with harmonised guitar intro, the gleefully lo-fi production values captures the dark vibe of the original, drawing the listener back to the heady days of trading tapes with your underground mates, always hoping to find some new gem amidst the clattering noise that would help you to escape the grind of the day and enter a darker plane. It’s good to see the band’s dark passion remains intact even at the end of so lengthy a career. Next up, Metallica’s ‘Creeping death’ gets a good kicking, with Donn Donni (Vesperian Sorrow) adding some hideously deformed vocals to a track that kinda sounds Metallica… if Metallica had recorded at Necrohell and spent all their time enduring the fierce Norse winter. A blistering cover of Morbid angel’s ‘demon seed’ is given added authenticity thanks to the presence of Mike Browning (Nocturnus / ex-Morbid Angel) on vocals whilst drummer Stu does his best to out blast beat The Berzerker, his beats hitting a ferociously mechanistic pace as the riffs pile up around him. Ending with tongues firmly in cheeks, the band finally pay tribute to the almighty W.A.S.P, recasting ‘Hellion’ as a hell bound, nitrous powered demon with vocals that sound like a muppet vomiting up its soul. To my mind it improves upon the original considerably…
Recorded in Texas with Tim Bartless, where Thus Defiled previously recorded ‘Daemonspawn’, ‘A return to the shadows’ is a welcome farewell from a band who have steadfastly refused to compromise. Listening to their warped re-imaginings of Metallica and W.A.S.P. in particular, it’s easy to imagine the band simply enjoying the opportunity to let loose one last time, and there’s a genuine sense of regret as ‘Hellion’ fades back into the same snarling noise that opened the album. If you like your metal black, then this is definitely the EP for you. 8
