Decision Day Sodom 2016 SPV/Steamhammer Records Sodom are one of the leading names in the German Thrash Metal movement alongside their peers, Destruction, Kreator and Tankard. These 4 bands shaped what we now know as the Teutonic sound, which took the speed from their American counterparts and turned up the aggression to 11. Sodom are best remembered for their classic Thrash albums, 1987’s Persecution Mania and 1989’s Agent Orange. Decision Day is the 15th studio album by Sodom and is the follow up to 2013’s Epitome of Torture. Stylistically, Decision Day is remarkably close to the previous album and that certainly is not a bad thing as Epitome of Torture was an excellent release. Since 2010, Sodom have maintained a stable line-up consisting of founding member and leader, Tom Angelripper on vocals and bass, long serving guitarist Bernemann Kost and sitting on the drum stool, Makka Freiwald. As stated above, Decision Day is very much in the similar vein to the previous album. Decision Day is produced by Cornelius Rambadt alongside Sodom, Rambadt also produced Sodom’s 2014 EP, Sacred Warpath, Rambadt obviously knows what Sodom wants from an album and delivers just that. Decision Day is aggressive with each instrument being clearly heard in the mix, without the bass or vocals being lost in a quagmire of double bass and distortion. The sound on Decision Day is easily earmarked as Teutonic Thrash, staying true to its roots and refusing to be eclipsed by other current Thrash releases, both from Germany or the USA. Decision Day opens up with a slight fade in before punching you in the face in true Sodom style with the excellent In Retribution. At first, In Retribution can make you shy away with it clocking in at over 6 minutes. However, do not let that put you off, In Retribution is a pounding record that will make you think where that 6 minutes has gone. Following on from In Retribution is the combo attack of the infectious Rolling Thunder with a chorus that will have you humming along before the end of the song. The combo continues with the excellent title track, but it Caligula, the single from Decision Day which steals the album. Caligula is a heavy, brooding piece of Teutonic Thrash, beginning with a bassline that could easily begin a Hardcore Punk song before the inevitable Sodom beat kicks in. Caligula is possibly one of the best Thrash songs this year, let alone one of the best records that Sodom have wrote in a while, especially with the chanting breakdown that is perfectly built for the live environment. The biggest problem with Decision Day is that Caligula is that good of a song, that the rest of the album kind of runs of out steam, with the only other song that doesn’t fade into the background being Belligerence. If we were still in the days of vinyl, side 1 of Decision Day would be fantastic, while side 2 would be rather lacklustre. That aside, Decision Day is a decent album with excellent production by a band that knows what they’re doing, what they’re fan base is and they don’t care about outside pressures. There are much better Thrash albums that have been released this year, however, there are much worse and if you’re a fan of the genre, Decision Day will not disappoint, but it also won’t set the world on fire. 6/10 Adam Caligula (Sodom)
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