Search - Overkill :: Immortalis

Not a whole lot better than Relivx, heres why.

Crystal D. Stasia | wv | 10/09/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Overkill have been one of my favorite bands for many years with Horrorscope and WFO being my favorite albums to date. After these they kept cranking out pretty good quality thrash with a few exceptions, well this is another one of those exceptions. Overkill have went through many guitar players through the years, my favorites have always been Rob Cannivino and Merrit Gant, S Marino and Joe Cameau were also very good but took the band in a less thrash more slowed down sabbath type metal, which some people liked and some didnt. I myself prefer there earlier work. So now with Immortalis which isnt one of the best names i've heard for a record they do more of the same that they have the last few albums. The main problem "AGAIN" is with guitarist Dave Lynsk who i consider to be about one of the worst guitar players in metal right now. He has almost no style, his riffs are as bland as cake with no icing and he always puts his guitar sound so out front that it takes away from the rest of the band. Killbox 13 is definately the best work with him, but his solos were still just ludicrous on that album. The other reason Immortalis just doesnt work is because since about 1997 or so Bobby Blitz has went with this new blues tinged type vocal delivery that is just getting old quick, list to Devils in the Mist, Necroshine, Thunderhead, just to name a few and you'll see that they all have the same exact vibe. So you may say with all the slagging why? do i give it 3 stars, well its hard to totally dog Overkill because they do tend to stick out and stay to there roots when it comes to metal, it just seems that with like 17 albums under there belt that the ability for them to write good quality songs has just went out the window. Get rid of LYNSK and blitz growl evil, don't sing like Stevie Ray Blitz. Some pluses are



Devils in the Mist

Skull and Bone

Overkill V

3 good songs 3 stars. Sorry boys.

Jerm."

The NYC/New Jersey Wrecking crew returns on the 2-year mark

Zander Haberstaft | Miami, Florida | 11/01/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"The Overkill "Wrecking Crew" was a great Thrash band in the eighties, no question about that. One of the things that set Overkill apart from the hundreds of Thrash metal bands of the same era was the fact that they stuck to their guns and played on through every passing trend, with some great albums along the way, without compromising anything about their style from the nineties into the present. Another one of the nice things about Overkill is in the eighties they had enough punk/hardcore flavor in the music to keep things interesting and also simultaneously stayed closer to the Hard Rock line of things as well, which made their albums stand out.



The most important thing though is they stuck around through thick and thin in the fickle music industry and were seemly impervious to trends. This has rewarded them with a loyal fanbase, myself included. "Immortalis", their 15th studio album (if you include the self released '84 LP), finds the band with much the same sound as the past few records like "Relixiv" and "Killbox 13". The production is top notch, all the instruments are more than decent but the flaw of Immortalis is the same as with Relixiv -the album starts out with some great material and the second half just doesn't hold up.



"Devils in the Mist" opens the album with a heavy, speedier song with tons of groove. From there it only gets better with the flawless "What it takes". The goodness keeps with "Skull and Bones" which features Randy Blythe of Lamb of God. When I heard he had guest vocals on this song I cringed not being a LOG fan, but actually the song is tastefully done.

There is plenty of tempo variety, plenty of memorable riffs and some downright impressive song writing. The problem is the bland/boring numbers like "Hellish pride" and "Hell is" and the ending track take away from the intensity and groove that the first half of the album commanded.



"Immortalis" is a good album for the first half alone, but it doesn't improve on the sluggish tendencies of "Relixiv" in the latter part of that record and in fact just repeats the same mistakes. If you're an Overkill fan you will probably enjoy this record in parts but don't come expecting "Horrorscope" or "Years of Decay" or even something on par with "Bloodletting". The fact that they still produce competent records after all these years should get you to buy this release anyway."

WAY Better than ReliXIV

Robert J. Dietz | Chicago | 10/09/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This album sees the return of the Zalula's to the Overkill production team. They really helped Overkill get back to their old 1990's thrash form on this one. And everyone pulled it off it without sounding dated. The sound is totally up-to-date. Both the music and the songwriting are great. Blitz and DD sound as good, if not better than ever. As with all Overkill albums, it is a must buy."