Review of Dew Scented - Incinerate

When it comes to modern thrash, Dew-Scented wrecks necks as well as any band in the game. Not that you need me to tell you that–these Germans are a known quantity, having consistently delivered the goods for quite some time now. Their eyebrow raising fixation on album titles beginning with the letter "I" is curious, but perhaps fitting. Although I wouldn’t go so far as to say that these guys keep putting out the same album over and over again, they definitely belong to the “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it" school of creativity. Let’s just be glad they picked a vowel capable of yielding some livable, if generic, album titles (It could be worse, with "U", after a couple albums beginning with "Un-", we’d likely be stuck with titles like Uvula and Upset XI). While we’re talking names, maybe the band’s oft maligned moniker has only managed to toughen them up, in true "A Boy Named Sue" fashion. Regardless of whether it’s the result of nature or nurture, Dew-Scented continue to deal out the kind of quality ferocious, high speed death thrash that we’ve come to expect from them, making Incinerate a quite worthy offering.

Incinerate may or may not best your favorite prior "I" effort, but it’s safe to say that if you dig their other stuff, you’re in for a treat. The blueprint remains the same: deadly precise hyper-kinetic tempos, skin flaying ferocity, impressive dual guitar and drum work, topped off with gruff, vegan-terrorizing shouts. The slightly hardcore-ish vocal delivery is pretty one dimensional, and may be a minor sticking point for some. The vocals aren’t necessarily objectionable, but they do wear thin. Again, that’s not a new development, so if you’ve dug them before, you’ll like them now too.

With the exception of a pair of opening and closing instrumentals, Incinerate is unyielding in its attack. Alternating between blasting, redlined breakneck thrash and lethal grooves, Dew-Scented build capably from the Slayer and Kreator playbooks, adding their own stamp in the process. There’s really not a whole lot separating these tracks–on one hand they can sometimes run together, but on the other, Incinerate doesn’t feel like it runs long. Some variety is offered courtesy of German titans Kreator, whose Mille kicks in guest vocals on the last proper track, "Retain the Scars", and the groove-heavy "Perdition For All" boasts some classy guest guitar work from Jeff Waters (Annihilator) and Gus G (Firewind, Nightrage, Mystic Prophecy, Dream Evil). Face melters like "Vanish Away", "That’s Why I Despise You", and "Into the Arms of Misery" are sure to be crowd pleasers when the band hits the stage. This is potent and crushing adrenaline-fueled metal, guaranteed to scratch your thrash itch.

Release Details

Dew Scented

Incinerate

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