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Rating: This is the review of a demo by a thrash group from Veneto, Padua, the Devaster, of their demo "Infernal March".
The Devaster formed in Padua in 2002. Their thrash is mainly inspired by the Metallica of the triad 'Kill'em All', 'Ride the Lightning' and 'Master of Puppets', Megadeth and partially by the Pantera of 'Cowboys From Hell' and 'Vulgar Display of Power', and by Destruction. I recommend downloading 'Infernal March' from their official website. Now, let's move to the review after this brief prologue.
'Infernal March' opens with MARCH, a brief intro in which walkie-talkies can be heard, followed by explosions. The song opens with a high note from the singer and is filled with riffs for wild headbanging, leading to a frenzied solo halfway through the song. The only flaw of this song is that, for a long time, the drums sound like those in 'St.Anger', but otherwise, it deserves a 6.8 rating.
The second song, FEVERISH COMMANDO, starts with a terrifying drumbeat after a brief intro of an army marching, then seems to calm down, only to explode with power. Here the drumming is much better produced, as is the entire promo (except for the first song). Then halfway through the song, lightning-like riffs accompany us forcefully for the rest of the track. The song deserves a 7.5. The third song, the most melodic in the demo, PERSECUTION, strongly showcases the influence of Metallica's 'Ride the Lightning', opening immediately with violent riffs. The voice in this song is a bit less angry than in the others, and mid-song, there is a melodic part that strongly reminds of Fade to Black, especially the lead guitar. The chorus, "WE ARE DEAD MEN WALKING", shouted with increasing anger four times, sticks instantly in the mind. The drumming towards the end of the song is stellar. The song deserves an 8 as it is for me the best track of the demo.
The fourth track INFERNAL EVOCATION, is a good song but doesn't take off, falling a bit into repetitiveness by trying to copy the previous one, although the drumming is not bad, and a fast solo is included. The song still deserves a 7. The finale is splendid with the last track NECROTHRASH (COME BACK...), where relentless riffs lead us to drumming that also delivers its best here; the song is a burst of energy from start to finish, here instead resembling songs like 'Damage Inc.' by Metallica.
After this album, on one hand, there's a sense of satisfaction knowing that Italian bands still carry on the '80s thrash. On the other, one thinks about many overrated Italian bands/singers and bands (like Devaster) that have to sweat to produce a demo and scrape together all the money.
The rating of this demo is a 3, and an invitation to Devaster to continue and release an album as soon as possible.
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