Defiance
Beyond Recognition

The third album by the Californians, Defiance, finally showed the world that the band had found its own niche in the crowded thrash metal scene of those years; the big problem was the fact that the trend of the time was sadly and irreversibly turning towards grunge; if you'll allow me the analogy, it's a bit like those climbers who, at the end of an uphill finish, feel spry, give their all, cross the finish line filled with satisfaction, only to realize they came in 12th, five minutes behind the winner.

It's 1992, and despite the release of two classic thrash pieces that year, ''The Law'' and ''Epidemic Of Violence'' by Exhorder and Demolition Hammer respectively, ensembles like Exodus, Testament, Vio-lence, Nuclear Assault (not to mention Metallica and Megadeth) were showing significant signs of wear and seemed to have exhausted the speed of previous years -in some cases leading to the temporary end of the band itself-. These 4 jesters from Oakland made one last attempt at musical continuity, probably creating the swan song of Bay Area thrash. Objectively speaking, the sound of "Beyond Recognition" is more than just genuine violence and piercing solos; significant and interesting technical and progressive nuances are distinguishable (''Power Trip'', ''Step Back'', or the Mordred-like ''Promised Afterlife'') highlighted by a Rob Beaton production that does justice to every instrument played and is, in fact, the strong point of the work. The Adams/Harrington(R.I.P) guitar duo gifts us with beautiful and shocking solo excursions that have little to envy from their far more famous colleagues; the bass lines played by Mike Kaufmann, never overbearing, play a perfect accompaniment role to the guitars, while drummer Matt Vander Ende steps into the spotlight, demonstrating all his talent with a monstrous performance. We mentioned progression earlier: the only off note is represented by singer Steeve Esquivel, whose voice does not progress at all, resulting -here more than on Void Terra Firma- excessively anchored to Chuck Billy's vocal style. ''A minor quirk'' you might think. Go listen to -one of all- ''Dead Silence'' and I challenge you to believe it's not a Testament piece!

Overall, the music of the platter is smooth, lovable, and, at some points, laden with a vertical heaviness that hits like a head against a wall (''No Compromise'' and the opener ''Killing Floor''), while in other sections it becomes more thoughtful and melodic with appreciable acoustic arrangements (''Perfect Nothing'', ''Inside Looking Out'') that certainly make the album more blooming. Every track on this "Beyond Recognition" is worthy of being listened to, without recycled riffs or rehashed variations. I strongly urge anyone who has never heard this handful of songs to remedy that. Thrash was dying in those years, and Defiance vainly tried to keep it alive.

To the writer, it ranks among the 10 best albums to come out of the Californian bay.