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ALBUM REVIEW: Persona Non Grata – Exodus

EXODUS might not be the biggest-selling thrash metal band, but they do have a strong claim to being the darkest. Since their reformation in 2004, they’ve given us some genuinely nasty material, with subjects ranging from school shootings to domestic and sexual abuse, not to mention the unspeakable horror of the Nanking massacre. They’re a band who aren’t afraid to take a spotlight, shine it on the very worst of humanity and insist you gaze directly at the evil. And lo and behold, they’ve done it again.

Five songs into Persona Non Grata, they drop a song called Prescribing Horror, a spine-tingling number that is more disturbing than any black metal track you care to name. It’s mid-paced, eerie and revolves around the Thalidomide scandal and it’s utterly horrible. If you’re not familiar with this particular chapter of medical history, we strongly suggest you do not Google it, some things you’re better off not knowing. But even if you go in blind, the sound of babies crying as Steve ‘Zetro’ Souza describes a nightmarish scenario is psychologically scarring. It’s been decades, but EXODUS still have the power to shock.

In comparison, the rest of Persona Non Grata seems relatively light-hearted. There’s still masses of violence to be had, but you can rely on EXODUS to deliver abrasive, pit-igniting metal. It’s about as subtle as using a Chinook helicopter to lift a china shop fifty feet into the air then drop it on a bull, but it’s a reliably intense ride.

Songs like Slipping Into Madness for example are classic Bay Area anthems. There are gang chants, propulsive drumbeats and elastic-fingered riffs aplenty, not to mention Zetro’s suitably deranged vocals screaming lyrics about insanity over the top. The Beatings Will Continue (Until Morale Improves) is similarly fast-paced and destined to be a fan favourite. It’s one of the shortest songs they’ve ever written and an energetic, windmilling highlight.

Elsewhere, Elitist casts a cynical eye over image-obsessed gatekeeping types, while Clickbait offers a bile-spitting take on manipulative online media. There’s a minor misstep with The Fires Of Division, a rather derivative thrasher that never quite takes off, but it’s rectified by Antiseed, the venomous album closer. This one is a snarling, angry beast with a whiplash-inducing guitar solo and it closes things on a neck-wrecking high.

Like a lot of their recent albums though, Persona Non Grata could have done with tighter editing. EXODUS have fallen into the habit of writing songs that go on too long and as always, there’s a few cases here where a minute or so could be shaved off. This is one of those situations where someone at the studio should have encouraged them to rein it in a bit, cutting even one song would have made it noticeably more accessible. If you can forgive a bit of bloat however and want an energetic hour of wildly over-the-top malevolence, Persona Non Grata is an essential listen. It all makes for an adrenaline-charged and extremely heavy hour and a must-purchase for any dyed-in-the-wool thrasher. But if you’re expecting a child, skip track five. For God’s sake, skip track five.

Rating: 8/10

Persona Non Grata - Exodus

Persona Non Grata is set for release on November 19th via Nuclear Blast Records.

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