Whiplash

Unborn Again

Pulverised Records 2009

After an extended hiatus, old school American thrashers return with their first album in 11 years.  So the first conundrum I am faced with is judge it solely on its own merits or to judge it in comparison to their back catalogue.  Or do a little of both which is the option I will go with.  The album opens with its strongest track, the menacing bruiser, Swallow the Slaughter.  Thick, meaty riffs rumble and flex in a somewhat reserved yet still aggressive manner.  After a native American style chant and accompanying riff Firewater simmers with a rock n roll attitude.  The track finds Whiplash sounding like a heavier hard rock act from the Hollywood strip rather than a fearsome thrash metal beast.  The album finally grabs some semblance of Whiplashes mayhemic roots on Float Face Down.  Speedier riffs charge forward rapidly with headbanging glee.  Amping up the energy even more is Pitbulls In The Playground with a catchy main riff and a frenzied tempo though the song still maintains control, never truly cutting loose except on the wild guitar solo at the 2:52 mark.  The face-mashing groove monster, Parade of Two Legs is an instrumental showcasing Tony's and guest musicians Frank Blackfire's soloing mastery across a foundation of stone-heavy metal.  More heavy rock leanings surface on Hook in Mouth which is a somewhat recurring attitude for the album.  The fastest, thrashiest track is the album closer Feeding Frenzy with its sawing riffs and up-tempo, pounding beat.  The song settles in to a thick, muscular groove towards its middle before ripping into speedy aggression again.  The album has a powerful modern sound which makes each instrument sound huge.  Tony's vocals are somewhat of an acquired taste as they sound somewhere between Dave Mustaine and Bobby Blitz.  Whiplash has composed a solid album of mature, modern sounding thrash that has strong rock and groove leanings.  It's strong on its own but pales in comparison to the reckless abandon of their early thrash classics Ticket to Mayhem and Power and Pain.