HORFIXION

    Disynchronize

   - 8 -

Thrash has been one of my favorite forms of metal since I became familiar with the genre in 1986 with such classic releases as METALLICA - Master of Puppets and SLAYER - Reign In Blood.  Thrash was king in the extreme metal world in the late 80's and early 90's, and I could not have been happier about its status in the metal hierarchy.  Bands like SABBAT, CORONER, HOLY TERROR, TESTAMENT, FORBIDDEN, MORDRED, and many others ruled my world back then, and they still greatly impress me to this day.

Of course, the onslaught of Death Metal in the early 90's killed Thrash for the most part, as most bands lost their record contracts and/or broke up.  Since the early 90's, I have not been impressed with virtually all of the Thrash CDs that have been released.  The fathers of Thrash that continued on (SLAYER, ANTHRAX, MEGADETH, METALLICA) all released products that are vastly inferior to their earlier work, and the newer Thrash bands such as IMAGIKA do very little for me.  I have enjoyed the fusion of Thrash and Melodic Death as heard in some great discs by AT THE GATES, SOILWORK, ARCH ENEMY and others, but I do not consider these bands to be true thrashers.

So do fans of the killer Thrash of the late 80's and early 90's have any currently active bands that they should check out?  Well, PUNISHER is decent, and DEW-SCENTED released a nice slab of chunky riffage this year, but I crown HORFIXION the current kings of Thrash.  Hailing from Quebec, an area better known for its Technical/Progressive Death Metal bands, HORFIXION have put together an excellent collection of Thrash tunes on Disynchronize.  Obviously strongly influenced by the late 80's/early 90's bands, I hear the sound of OBLIVEON - Nemesis, SEPULTURA - Arise, and SLAYER - Seasons In The Abyss on Disynchronize.

HORFIXION's music is not complex, but it is not simplistic either.  Catchy riffs abound, and the music is dynamic enough to keep you interested.  The rhythm section is solid with plenty of double bass runs for all, but the real appeal of Disynchronize is the killer riffage that evokes memories of a time when the metal world was not as diverse as it is now, but its musicians knew the worth of catchy, chunky, well-played guitar.  The vocals are in the typical gruff spoken/shouted style of classic Thrash, and neither add nor detract much from the quality of the music.

My favorite tunes on Disynchronize are the title track, "Deserted Landscape", and "Danger Zone", but all nine songs kick ass.  They even give you a bonus track of "Disynchronize" sung in their native French.  What more do you need?  If you call yourself a Thrash fan, you simply must give HORFIXION a try.  I hope their soon to be released disc, Instigators of Chaos, is as good as Disynchronize.  Check them out at their home page.
 
 
 

Contributed by John Frank

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