ALBUM REVIEW: None Survive The Sun – Reprisal

It’s been five years since south-east England’s REPRISAL released their debut EP Ichneumanity. The quartet have not been resigned to the legions of bands who sadly fizzled out in the challenging musical climate, however: the last five years have been spent punishing the live circuit and honing their craft. And after a brutal growth period, the four-piece progressive thrash outfit are set to release their debut full-length, None Survive The Sun, through Hostile Media.

Though REPRISAL are absolutely a thrash band, the style experienced on None Survive The Sun is a far cry from the Kill ‘Em All’s and Show No Mercy’s of the genre’s origins. The speed, basic style and structure of thrash is all still there, but there’s a hint of a death-thrash sound more akin to REVOCATION than MEGADETH, and it’s all packaged nicely with a technical, progressive flair. There is no epic, atmosphere building intro to None Survive The Sun, rather, REPRISAL favour a highly intense burst into the foot-to-the-floor thrash attack that the listener will be subjected to across the album as a whole. Oxygen Crisis and lead single Monomania offer a respectable start, but it isn’t until Cannibal Cosmos before None Survive The Sun truly hits its stride.

With its slightly more mid-tempo, crushing approach, Cannibal Cosmos heralds a stratospheric leap in quality that continues throughout None Survive The Sun, and begins the series of tracks that stand as the highlights from the album. Hammer of Light features just a hint of a crossover swagger, though is stylistically rooted in a classic, Bay Area sound otherwise, delivering a high octane slice of thrashy mayhem. This inspiration from the initial glory days of thrash carries forward into The Great Dying, where speed and precision are paramount, taking a backseat only to inject hooks into the mix.

Arguably the strongest track on None Survive The Sun, Starmaker sees REPRISAL channel their myriad of influences into one consistent, truly excellent piece of music. Here, we see the death metal influence at its most prominent, complimenting the thrashy basis of the sound brilliantly, oozing serious REVOCATION vibes while incorporating a respectable level of melody, technicality, and progressive flare. REPRISAL reign in the unrelenting fury for an all too brief moment with Born Alien, an interlude track that showcases some truly fantastic guitar-work that generates a sinister atmosphere, before diving into album closer, the all-round thrasher Nephila.

Mixing a variety of influences, REPRISAL have delivered an excellent debut album. With an exceptionally tight delivery, brilliant vocal performance and a seemingly endless series of crushing riffs, None Survive The Sun is certainly a thoroughly enjoyable listen – however, the record does suffer from a bit of a lack of memorability, with many of the blistering riffs blending together. That said, the growth on display from REPRISAL’s debut EP is incredible, and no one could disagree that the band should take great pride in the quality of None Survive The Sun. With REPRISAL primed to dominate in the coming years, the future of British thrash looks very bright indeed.

Rating: 8/10

None Survive The Sun is out now via Hostile Media.

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